Network-based system for selecting or purchasing hardware products

ABSTRACT

System and method for receiving purchase information for a client system, e.g., a measurement system. A configuration diagram visually representing a current configuration of the client system is displayed. Multiple product icons are displayed representing products (hardware and/or programs) available for use in the client system. User input is received graphically associating at least one first product icon with the configuration diagram, where the first product icon represents a first product, and the user input indicates a desire to purchase the first product. An updated configuration diagram is displayed representing the configuration of the client system after receiving the user input, including the first product icon. Pricing information for the first product is displayed in response to receiving the user input. User input initiating purchase of the first product may be received in response to displaying the pricing information, and the product may be provided to the user.

CONTINUATION DATA

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/338,433 titled “Network-Based System for Selecting or PurchasingProducts”, filed Jan. 8, 2003, whose inventors are Mohammed Kamran Shah,David W. Fuller III, Jeffrey N. Correll and Brian H. Sierer, which is aContinuation-In-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/120,257titled “Network-based System for Configuring a Measurement System usingConfiguration Information Generated based on a User Specification,”filed Apr. 10, 2002, whose inventors are David W. Fuller III, Michael L.Santori, Brian Sierer, Ganesh Ranganathan, John Pasquarette, Joseph E.Peck, Matthew Novacek, Hugo A. Andrade, and Newton Peterson, which was aContinuation-In-Part of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/101,512 titled“Network-based System for Configuring a Measurement System usingConfiguration Information Generated based on a User Specification” filedMar. 19, 2002, whose inventors are Brian Sierer, Ganesh Ranganathan,John Pasquarette, David W. Fuller III, Joseph E. Peck, Matthew Novacek,and Hugo A. Andrade, which claimed benefit of priority of U.S.provisional application Ser. No. 60/312,359 titled “System and Methodfor Online Configuration of a Measurement System” filed Aug. 15, 2001,whose inventors are Brian Sierer, Ganesh Ranganathan, Hugo Andrade andJoseph Peck.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to the fields of system design anddistributed software programming and deployment, and more particularlyto a system and method for receiving purchase information for productsfor use in a client system, e.g., a measurement system.

DESCRIPTION OF THE RELATED ART

With the advent of networked computer systems, there has been a trend incomputer software to provide more distributed software applications. Forexample, in some fields developers are attempting to distribute softwareapplications among two or more nodes or computer systems in a network,wherein the application may comprise a plurality of different softwareprograms executing in a plurality of different computer systems.

Measurement and automation systems are moving toward computer basedsystems wherein a computer system performs much of the processing,analysis, or control for measurement and automation applications.Measurement and automation systems are also moving toward network-basedor distributed systems, wherein a plurality of network-based devicesoperate together to perform a desired measurement and/or automationfunction. Various new intelligent devices are also starting to appear inmeasurement and automation systems, such as smart sensors, smartcameras, smart motion control devices, smart distributed dataacquisition devices, computer based instrument cards, PXI and VXIsystems which may include intelligent controllers or reconfigurabledevices, programmable logic controllers (PLCs), etc.

Computer-based measurement and automation systems which employintelligent devices have become increasingly desirable in view of theincreasing complexity of measurement and automation tasks, and thevariety of intelligent or programmable instruments and devices availablefor use. However, due to the wide variety of possible testing andcontrol situations and environments, and also the wide array ofinstruments or devices available, it is often necessary for a user todevelop custom programs to control a desired system.

Increasingly, computers are required to be used and programmed by thosewho are not highly trained in computer programming techniques. This isparticularly true in the measurement and automation fields, whereengineers are often required to develop a test, measurement orautomation application to accomplish a certain objective. As a result,in many cases it is extremely difficult for a user to be able to createvarious computer programs and distribute these programs among devices ina distributed system.

Additionally, in many cases a user may be uncertain as to the currentand/or desired configuration of his or her system, including devices,inter-device couplings, and programs stored and/or installed on one ormore of the devices. This uncertainty may complicate efforts toconfigure the system for performing a desired task, e.g., to deployappropriate programs onto devices in the system.

Therefore, it would be desirable to be able to provide improved systemsand methods for configuring systems, e.g., client systems.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Various embodiments of a system and method for specifying products forand/or receiving purchase information for a client system, e.g., ameasurement system, are presented. More specifically, systems andmethods are described for using a configuration diagram representing thehardware and software configuration of the client system to specifyproducts for use in the client system, and/or for receiving productinformation, e.g., pricing information and/or proposed products, and/orto receive purchase information regarding products for use in the clientsystem. The system may be implemented in a system where the clientsystem, e.g., a client computer, e.g., a first computer system, iscoupled to a server computer system, e.g., a second computer system,through a network (or a computer bus).

The client system preferably includes a plurality of devices coupledtogether. At least one of the devices may include one or more programs.It is noted that in different embodiments, the client system may includedevices and software related to various applications and fields. Forexample, the client system may comprise one or more of: a measurementsystem, a modeling or simulation system, such as a rapid controlprototype system or a hardware-in-the-loop simulation, an automationsystem, a network system, and so on. Although it is further noted thatthese example applications and fields are exemplary only, and are notintended to limit the application of the method or the types of clientsystems to any particular domains or fields. Similarly, the devices andprograms included in the client system may be of any of a variety oftypes, including, for example, one or more of analog devices, digitaldevices, processor-based devices, and programmable hardware elements,e.g., field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), among others. Similarly,the programs included in the client system may be text-based programs,such as C, C++, Java, HTML, etc., graphical programs, such as LabVIEWgraphical programs, and/or hardware configuration programs, amongothers.

In one embodiment of the present invention, a configuration diagram maybe displayed, e.g., on a display device of the client system, where theconfiguration diagram represents the devices and/or programs in theclient system, e.g., the current configuration of the client system. Thediagram may include device icons representing each of the plurality ofdevices, link icons indicating coupling relationships between theplurality of devices, and program icons representing any programscurrently stored or installed in the client system. More specifically,the configuration diagram may include a first device icon representing afirst device in the client system.

The device icons may each have an appearance to visually indicate a typeof the respective device, i.e., each device icon may visually orgraphically indicate the type of device that the device icon represents.Similarly, the program icons may each have an appearance to visuallyindicate a type of the respective program. As noted above, theconfiguration diagram may also include links between the device iconsindicating respective couplings between the devices in the clientsystem, and so the link icons may each have an appearance to visuallyindicate a type of the respective link between devices. For example, alink icon may visually indicate whether the link is a serial, parallel,digital, analog, and/or wireless link, among others, or may indicatesuch characteristics as the signal or data type, e.g., power vs. data,direction of data flow, numbers of wires in the link, communicationprotocol, etc.

In one embodiment, the program icons may be visually displayedindicating an association with respective device icons representingrespective devices in which the programs are stored and/or executed,e.g., the program icons may be visually displayed proximate torespective device icons representing respective devices in which theprograms are stored and/or executed. As used herein, the term“proximate” refers to being on or near an item, e.g., an icon, i.e., ifa first icon is displayed proximate to a second icon, the first icon issufficiently close to the second icon such that the user would presumeor understand an intended relationship between the two icons. Thus, aprogram icon may be located proximate to a device icon to represent thefact that the corresponding program is stored and/or executed on thecorresponding device. In another embodiment, link icons may be displayedcoupling the program icons with the respective device icons. Othergraphical techniques associating the program icons with the respectivedevices are also contemplated.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may comprise a tree diagramwhich visually represents the system, wherein the tree diagram displaysa hierarchical view of the plurality of devices and the one or moreprograms in the system. In another embodiment, the configuration diagrammay comprise the plurality of device icons connected by link iconsindicating couplings between the plurality of devices in the proposedsystem, as well as the tree diagram presenting a hierarchical view ofthe devices (and optionally the programs) in the system.

The configuration diagram may be displayed on the display device of theclient system in a variety of different ways, e.g., the client systemmay access the server computer over the network, e.g., a LAN, WAN, theInternet, or any other transmission medium, e.g., by directing a webbrowser to a URL (Universal Resource Locator) of a website maintained onthe server computer, or the server computer may initiate communicationswith the client system, e.g., the client computer. Once communication isestablished between the server computer and the client system, theserver computer may programmatically determine information regarding theplurality of devices and the one or more programs, e.g., byprogrammatically analyzing the client system to determine the presenceof one or more of the plurality of devices and the one or more programs.

In one embodiment, the server computer may download an agent or programto the client system, which may then execute on the client system, e.g.,on a device of the client system, to programmatically determine theinformation regarding the plurality of devices and the one or moreprograms in the client system, and may send the determined informationto the server computer. In another embodiment, the server computer mayaccess at least a portion of the information from at least one of thedevices in the system, e.g., by accessing plug and play information, todetermine the presence of the plurality of devices and the one or moreprograms, or the server may query a configuration program on one of thedevices in the system to determine the devices and programs.

A plurality of product icons may then be displayed representing productsavailable for use in the client system, e.g., hardware devices and/orprograms. The plurality of product icons may be displayed in a palette,e.g., in a graphical user interface (GUI) window, in a menu, a dialogbox, etc., as is well known in the art. In one embodiment, theparticular product icons displayed may be dependent upon theconfiguration diagram or information related to the configurationdiagram. In other words, the product icons displayed may be based on thecurrent configuration of the client system. For example, the displayedproduct icons may correspond to devices and/or programs that arecompatible with those devices and/or programs represented in theconfiguration diagram.

Once the product icons have been displayed, user input graphicallyassociating at least one first product icon with the configurationdiagram may be received, where the first product icon represents a firstproduct, and where the user input indicates a desire to purchase thefirst product. The graphical association between the first product iconand the configuration diagram may be performed in a variety of ways. Forexample, the user input may graphically associate the first product iconwith a first location in the configuration diagram, e.g., using “dragand drop” techniques, as is well known in the art. The first location inthe configuration diagram may simply be a blank area within the borders,e.g., the frame, of the configuration diagram, or may correspond to adisplayed element, e.g., an icon, in the diagram. For example, the userinput may graphically associate the at least one first product iconproximate to a link icon in the configuration diagram, indicating acoupling between the first product icon and an icon in the diagramalready associated with the link.

More generally, receiving user input graphically associating the firstproduct icon with the configuration diagram may include receiving userinput graphically associating the first product icon with a firstlocation in the configuration diagram, and receiving user inputgraphically coupling the first product icon with a second icon in theconfiguration diagram, where the coupling indicates an intendedrelationship between the first product and a component of the clientsystem corresponding to the second icon. Thus, for example, the user maydrag and drop a program icon from the palette onto or proximate to adevice icon in the configuration diagram, thereby indicating that theprogram is to be stored and/or executed on the device corresponding tothe device icon. In one embodiment, after said graphically associating,the first product icon may be modified to reflect the association. Forexample, the color of the icon may be changed to indicate that theproduct (icon) has been selected, or, the icon's appearance may bemodified to indicate the particular relationship implied by theassociation, e.g., using different colors to indicate whether thecorresponding product is a data source or target, and so on.

In one embodiment, type checking may be performed regarding the intendedrelationship between the first product and the component of themeasurement system corresponding to the second icon, and, if theintended relationship is invalid, an error message may be presented tothe user to that effect. In one embodiment, the message may also includesuggestions as how to resolve the issue, e.g., suggesting additionalproducts or connections. Thus, in one embodiment, in response toreceiving the user input indicating a desired relationship, secondproduct icons may be displayed representing second products availablefor use in the client system, where the second products are related tothe first product. More generally, where graphically associating thefirst product icon with the configuration diagram includes indicating aselection of the first product from the plurality of products, themethod may automatically display a second plurality of product iconsrepresenting second products available for use in the measurement systembased on one or more past selections. In this way, the method maysuccessively refine the presentation of product options to the user asthe user provides successive selection information. Similarly, if theuser modifies the configuration diagram, e.g., changes the connectivityamong the diagram elements or removes an element from the configuration,the method may modify the displayed product icons in accordance with thenew configuration.

Once the user input has been received graphically associating the firstproduct icon with the configuration diagram, an updated configurationdiagram may be displayed representing the configuration of themeasurement system after the graphical association, where the updatedconfiguration diagram includes the first product icon. In other words,after or in response to the use input, the configuration diagram may bemodified to include the first product icon, and displayed on the clientsystem display device.

In one embodiment, once the user has provided input selecting the firstproduct icon for inclusion in the configuration, e.g., by graphicallyassociating the first product icon with the configuration diagram,pricing information for the first product may optionally be displayed.In the case that the user input graphically associates a plurality ofproduct icons with the configuration diagram, where each of theplurality of product icons represents a respective product, accumulatedprices of the respective products may be displayed, e.g., as eachproduct icon is graphical associated with the configuration diagram. Forexample, the user may select the first product icon, thereby invokingdisplay of pricing information for the first product, then the user mayselect a second product icon representing a second product, therebyinvoking display of pricing information for the second product. Themethod may then display cumulative pricing information for the twoproducts together, i.e., may display a total price for the cumulativeselected products. Displaying other pricing information is alsocontemplated.

In response to displaying the pricing information, user input may bereceived initiating purchase of the first product, e.g., the user mayselect an option from a menu or a pop-up dialog box indicating purchaseof the selected products, and then may provide payment information suchas a billing account or credit card number. In response to receivinguser input initiating purchase of the first product, the first productmay be provided to the user. For example, if the product is a program,the program may be downloaded from the server computer (or anotherserver coupled to the network), or delivered via any other means asdesired. In one embodiment, the user may drag and drop the program icononto a device icon in the configuration diagram to invoke deployment ofthe program onto the device corresponding to the device icon. If theproduct is a hardware device, the device may be delivered via standarddelivery means, e.g., by mail.

Thus, according to various embodiments of the invention, the user canaccess a server and view a palette of icons representing products suchas hardware devices or programs. The user can drag and drop hardwaredevice icons from the server palette onto a configuration diagramdisplayed on the client system. This may indicate that the user desiresto purchase these products. The user can also drag and drop in programicons from the server palette onto the configuration diagram to deployprograms from the server onto devices in the client system.

In another embodiment of the present invention, a configuration diagrammay be received, e.g., from the client system, where the configurationdiagram represents a desired configuration of the client system,including, for example, a plurality of hardware devices and/or programs.The configuration diagram may be received in a variety of differentways. For example, in one embodiment, electronic communication may beestablished between the server computer and the client system over thenetwork, e.g., a LAN, WAN, the Internet, or any other transmissionmedium using any of a variety of communication protocols. For example,in one embodiment, a device in the client system, such as a clientcomputer, may initiate a network session with the server computer, e.g.,by directing a web browser to a URL (Universal Resource Locator) of awebsite maintained on the server computer. Alternatively, the servercomputer may initiate communications with the client system, e.g., theclient computer.

In various embodiment, the configuration diagram may be created in anumber of different ways. For example, a user of the client system maymanually generate the configuration diagram, e.g., using a softwareprogram executing on the client computer, by dragging and droppingvarious icons representing devices, programs, and/or links onto thediagram, or by drawing the configuration diagram, e.g., using agraphical configuration tool. As another example, a currentconfiguration of the client system may be determined, and an initialconfiguration diagram representing the current configuration of theclient system generated. The user may then modify the initialconfiguration diagram to produce the configuration diagram representingthe desired configuration of the client system and provide the desiredconfiguration diagram to the server computer over the network.

In one embodiment, the current configuration of the client system may bedetermined programmatically, i.e., automatically, e.g., by the servercomputer over the network, e.g., the server computer may access theclient system over the network, determine the current configuration ofthe client system, generate the initial configuration diagram, andprovide the diagram to the user over the network. In another embodiment,the current configuration of the client system may be determined bysoftware executing on the client system, e.g., the client computer. Inone embodiment, the software may be downloaded to the client computerfrom the server computer over the network, then executed on the clientcomputer.

Once the configuration diagram has been received, e.g., by the servercomputer, the server computer may programmatically analyze theconfiguration diagram to determine information regarding one or moreproducts, e.g., at least one hardware device and/or at least oneprogram. For example, the server computer may programmatically analyzethe client system to determine pricing information for the devicesand/or programs represented in the configuration diagram. In oneembodiment, the configuration diagram may include information indicatingwhich, if any, of the components or products represented in theconfiguration diagram are already included in the client system. Forexample, the icons representing the various devices and/or programs maybe labeled or color-coded to indicate their respective presence (or not)in the actual client system. The server computer may then determinepricing information for those components or products represented in thediagram which are not currently included in the client system. Indifferent embodiments, other information related to the products, suchas availability, model numbers, descriptions, etc., may also bedetermined.

After the pricing information has been determined for the one or moreproducts, the pricing information may be provided to the user, e.g.,over the network. The pricing information (and possibly additionalinformation), may be provided to the user in a variety of differentforms, including text-based and/or graphical information, among others.For example, in one embodiment, the configuration diagram may bemodified to include the pricing information, and the modifiedconfiguration diagram provided to the user. In one embodiment, thepricing information for each product may be displayed in theconfiguration diagram proximate to respective product icons representingeach product. Alternatively, the pricing information may be associatedwith the product icon such that when the user right-clicks on theproduct icon, or hovers the cursor over the icon, the pricinginformation is displayed.

Once the pricing information has been provided to the user, user inputspecifying purchase of at least one of the one or more products mayoptionally be received, and the purchased products may be provided tothe user in response. For example, the user may specify purchase of theproducts by dragging and dropping icons from a palette to theconfiguration diagram, or, in an embodiment where the proposed productsare represented by icons in the (modified) configuration diagram, theuser may right-click on a respective icon, thereby invoking a menu orpop-up dialog box that displays purchase options for the correspondingproduct, e.g., payment methods, etc. The user may select a desiredpurchase option and may be prompted for additional payment information,such as a billing account or credit card number, which may then beentered and provided to the server computer over the network.

In one embodiment, the user may select products for purchase bymodifying the configuration diagram and providing the modified diagramback to the server, e.g., the user may mark at least a subset of thedisplayed product icons to indicate purchase of the correspondingproducts, e.g., by right-clicking on each product icon and selecting anoption from a pop-up menu indicating a desire to purchase thecorresponding product. In one embodiment, payment information may alsobe entered, as described above. In response to the selected option, theselected product icon may be modified to indicate the purchase, e.g., bya color change, etc. The configuration diagram may then be provided tothe server where it may be programmatically analyzed to determine theproducts marked for purchase by the user. In another embodiment, oncethe user has selected the products for purchase using the configurationdiagram, information indicating the purchase may be provided to theserver without the configuration diagram, i.e., just the purchaseinformation may be provided.

In one embodiment, the user may select a plurality of products forpurchase, e.g., from the configuration diagram or from a palette ofavailable or proposed products. As the user selects products forpurchase, accumulated prices of the respective products may be displayedas each product icon is selected. For example, the user may select afirst product icon, thereby invoking display of pricing informationand/or purchase options for a first product, then the user may select asecond product icon representing a second product, thereby invokingdisplay of pricing information and/or purchase options for the secondproduct. The method may then display cumulative pricing information forthe two products together, i.e., may display a total price for thecumulative selected products. The cumulative price may be updated witheach product purchase selection until the user indicates completion ofthe selection process, e.g., by selecting a payment method, finalizingthe purchase, etc.

In response to receiving user input indicating or initiating purchase ofthe product(s), the product(s) may be provided to the user. For example,if the product is a program, the program may be downloaded from theserver computer (or another server coupled to the network), or deliveredvia any other means as desired. In this case, the user may drag and dropthe program icon onto a device icon in the configuration diagram toinvoke deployment of the program onto the device corresponding to thedevice icon. If the product is a hardware device, the device may bedelivered via standard delivery means, e.g., by mail or other deliverymeans.

In one embodiment, in response to receiving the configuration diagram,the server computer may programmatically analyze the diagram and proposeone or more products for inclusion in the client system. For example,the configuration diagram may be programmatically analyzed to performtype checking among components, e.g., devices and/or programs,represented in the configuration diagram, as described above. Inresponse to the analysis type checking information may be generated andprovided to the user. Type checking may include analyzing therelationships between components represented in the configurationdiagram to determine the validity or appropriateness of therelationships, or to determine alternatives to the expressedrelationships, as also described above.

Thus, a configuration diagram may be used to specify products, includinghardware devices and/or programs, for inclusion in a client system,e.g., a measurement system. Additionally, the configuration diagram maybe used to specify and/or communicate product information, such aspricing information and/or proposed products, related to the clientsystem.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

A better understanding of the present invention can be obtained when thefollowing detailed description of the preferred embodiment is consideredin conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a network system comprising two or more computersystems that may implement an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2A illustrates an instrumentation system according to oneembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2B illustrates an industrial automation system according to oneembodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 illustrates an exemplary distributed measurement system accordingto one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 is an exemplary block diagram of the computer systems of thepreceding Figures;

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an exemplary development environment forcreating and using configuration diagrams;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart diagram illustrating creating a configurationdiagram and using the configuration diagram to graphically configureprogram deployment and/or invocation, e.g., deploy programs on devicesin the system;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart diagram illustrating creation of a configurationdiagram according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 8 is a flowchart diagram illustrating display of program icons orelement icons corresponding to programs or elements comprised in adevice;

FIG. 9 is a flowchart diagram illustrating deploying a program on to adevice according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 10 is a flowchart diagram illustrating examining a program type ofa program and selectively converting the program to a type compatiblewith the destination device;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart diagram illustrating various operations that maybe performed when moving a program icon from source device icon to adestination device icon;

FIG. 12 is a flowchart diagram illustrating association of a programicon from a remote device to the main computer system to configure themain computer system to invoke the program;

FIG. 13A is a flowchart diagram illustrating various operations that maybe performed on a program icon;

FIG. 13B is a flowchart diagram illustrating execution of anapplication;

FIG. 14 illustrates a configuration dialog which may be used in creatinga configuration diagram;

FIGS. 15-19 are screen shots illustrating graphical deployment orinvocation changes of programs in exemplary simple configurationdiagrams;

FIG. 20A illustrates selection of options on the configuration diagram;

FIG. 20B illustrates selection of a “Remote Call” feature;

FIGS. 21A and 21B illustrate exemplary configuration diagrams for ameasurement system;

FIG. 22 is a flowchart diagram illustrating creation of a graphicalprogram;

FIG. 23 is a flowchart diagram illustrating configuration of a node in agraphical program for remote execution;

FIG. 24A illustrates an exemplary block diagram of a graphical programwhere the user is configuring a remote call of a node;

FIG. 24B illustrates the exemplary block diagram of FIG. 24A after theuser has deployed the node to a remote device for remote execution;

FIG. 25 is a flowchart diagram illustrating graphically incorporating aprogram icon from a remote device into another program;

FIG. 26 is a flowchart diagram illustrating creation of a graphicalprogram which includes incorporation of device icons into the graphicalprogram;

FIGS. 27A-27E are screen shots illustrating a sequence where the userdrags a device icon onto another configuration diagram, selects aparticular device icon in the configuration diagram, selects aparticular program icon, and inserts the device icon into the programrepresented by the program icon;

FIGS. 28A and 28B are screen shots illustrating incorporating a programicon from a configuration diagram into a graphical program;

FIG. 29 illustrates a simple configuration diagram where the user hasselected a device icon to configure the device;

FIG. 30 illustrates the configuration diagram of FIG. 29 where the userhas selected an option to view I/O channels and data points of a deviceicon, and a context-sensitive help window is displayed;

FIG. 31 illustrates operation whereby a user drags and drops a programicon from a first device icon onto a second device icon;

FIG. 32 illustrates operation whereby a user selects a data pointelement from the configuration diagram and drags and drops the datapoint element from the configuration diagram on to the front panel of agraphical program;

FIG. 33A illustrates operation whereby a user selects a data pointelement from the configuration diagram and drags and drops the datapoint element from the configuration diagram on to the block diagram ofa graphical program;

FIG. 33B illustrates operation whereby a user “wires up” an iconrepresenting the data point element with other nodes or graphicalprogram elements in the block diagram;

FIG. 34 illustrates operation whereby a user selects a program icon tostart operations;

FIG. 35 illustrates exemplary service icons that can be used to controldevice execution;

FIG. 36 illustrates operation whereby a user desires to copy settingsfrom a device icon to another device icon;

FIG. 37 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for characterizing a clientsystem over a network;

FIG. 38 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for animating deployment ofa program to a client system.

FIG. 39 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for receiving purchaseinformation for a client system;

FIG. 40 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for specifying products fora measurement system;

FIG. 41 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for generating aconfiguration diagram for a measurement system based on a userspecification of a task;

FIGS. 42 and 43 flowchart embodiments of a method for configuring aclient system using a configuration diagram database; and

FIG. 44 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for populating aconfiguration diagram database.

While the invention is susceptible to various modifications andalternative forms, specific embodiments thereof are shown by way ofexample in the drawings and are herein described in detail. It should beunderstood, however, that the drawings and detailed description theretoare not intended to limit the invention to the particular formdisclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is to cover allmodifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spiritand scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Incorporation by Reference

The following references are hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety as though fully and completely set forth herein:

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The LabVIEW and BridgeVIEW graphical programming manuals, including the“G Programming Reference Manual”, available from National InstrumentsCorporation, are also hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety.

FIG. 1—Computer Network

FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary system including a first computer system82 that is coupled to a second computer system 90 over a network. Thecomputer system 82 may be coupled through a network 84 (or a computerbus) to the second computer system 90. The computer systems 82 and 90may each be any of various types, as desired. Also, the network 84 canalso be any of various types, including a LAN (local area network), WAN(wide area network), the Internet, or an Intranet, among others.

The first and second computer systems 82 and 90 may comprise devicesthat form at least a portion of a system, such as a distributed system.Alternatively, the computer system 82 may comprise part of the system,and the server computer system 90 may provide various services to thesystem, such as a selection of programs and/or devices for the system,or generation of a configuration diagram for the system as describedherein.

Additional computer systems (not shown) may also couple to the firstand/or second computer systems 82 and 90. Various other devices mayconnect or couple to one or more of the computer systems 82 and 90, orto other computer systems in the system. For example, any one or more ofthe devices shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B may couple to one or both of thecomputer systems 82 and 90. In addition, the system may comprise asingle computer system, such as computer system 82, coupled to one ormore other devices.

As used herein, the term “system” is intended to include a systemcomprising two or more interconnected or coupled devices, i.e., two ormore devices that are coupled together in some fashion. The two or moredevices may be coupled together via wired or wireless means. Wired meansmay include a network, such as a local area network (LAN) and/or a widearea network (WAN), such as the Internet, a computer bus, a serial orparallel bus, or other wired communication methods. Example local areanetworks include Ethernet networks, Token Ring networks, and variousindustrial communication networks such as Foundation Fieldbus,DeviceNet, and CAN (Controller Area Network) networks. Example parallelbuses include the PCI bus, PXI bus, GPIB, and VXI bus, among others.Example serial buses include USB (Universal Serial Bus), IEEE 1394,RS-242, and RS-485, among others. Wireless means may include wirelessprotocols such as IEEE 802.11 (wireless Ethernet), Bluetooth, and othertypes of wireless communication.

As used herein, the term “device” is intended to have its ordinarymeaning as any of various types of devices, units or components. Theterm “device” is intended to include “programmable devices” and“non-programmable devices”.

As used herein, the term “programmable device” is intended to includeany of various types of devices that include one or more of: 1) aprocessor and memory; or 2) a programmable hardware element orreconfigurable logic. Exemplary types of processors include aconventional microprocessor or CPU (such as an X86, PowerPC, SunSparc,etc.), a digital signal processor (DSP), microcontroller, or other typeof processor. Exemplary types of programmable hardware elements includea programmable logic device (PLD), e.g., an FPGA (field programmablegate array), or other types of reconfigurable logic. It is noted that aprogram may typically only be deployed to or stored on a programmabledevice. In the description that follows, references to devices in thecontext of deploying, storing, or modifying programs on the devicegenerally refer to programmable devices.

Exemplary types of programmable devices include computer systems;network devices; personal digital assistants (PDAs); television systems;measurement devices (including instruments, industrial automationdevices, process control devices (e.g., for automation and measurement),smart data acquisition devices, smart sensors (including smart cameras),and smart actuators, etc.); video devices (e.g., digital cameras,digital video cameras); audio devices; computer peripherals; telephones;appliances; or other processor-based or programmable hardware-baseddevices. Exemplary measurement and automation devices include any of thedevices shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B. Exemplary network devices includenetwork interface cards, routers, bridges, switches, hubs, etc.

The term “non-programmable device” is intended to include any of variouscomponents, such as transducers, sensors, connector blocks, cabling, andother non-programmable devices.

As used herein, the term “computer system” may include any type ofcomputer system, including a personal computer system, mainframecomputer system, workstation, network appliance, Internet appliance,etc. In general, the term “computer system” can be broadly defined toencompass any device having at least one processor that executesinstructions from a memory medium.

As used herein, the term “application” includes one or more programs. Anapplication may comprise a plurality of programs which operate togetherto perform a function or accomplish a certain result. The plurality ofprograms may operate together in a system, wherein various programs maybe deployed to various devices in the system for distributed execution.An application may thus comprise a plurality of programs distributedamong a plurality of devices for distributed execution. An applicationmay also include other data structures such as configuration files forconfiguring hardware devices, help files, supporting documentation, etc.The term “project” may be used similarly to an “application”.

As used herein, the term “program” is intended to include 1) a softwareprogram which may be stored in a memory and is executable by a processoror 2) a hardware configuration program useable for configuring aprogrammable hardware element or reconfigurable logic. A softwareprogram may be any type of code, script and/or data that may be storedin a memory medium and executed by a processor. Exemplary softwareprograms include programs written in text-based programming languages,such as C, C++, Pascal, Fortran, Cobol, Java, etc.; programs written inassembly language; programs written in graphical programming languages;programs that have been compiled to machine language; scripts; and othertypes of executable software. Exemplary hardware configuration programsinclude netlists or bit files for elements such as FPGAs and otherreconfigurable hardware.

As used herein, the term “graphical program” or “block diagram” isintended to include a program comprising graphical code, e.g., two ormore interconnected nodes or icons, wherein the interconnected nodes oricons may visually indicate the functionality of the program. The nodesmay be connected in one or more of a data flow, control flow, and/orexecution flow format. The nodes may also be connected in a “signalflow” format, which is a subset of data flow. Thus the terms “graphicalprogram” or “block diagram” are each intended to include a programcomprising a plurality of interconnected nodes or icons which visuallyindicate the functionality of the program.

A “data flow” graphical program or diagram refers to a plurality ofinterconnected nodes or icons, wherein the interconnections among thenodes visually indicate that data produced by one node is used byanother node. A “data flow” graphical program or diagram may alsoinclude one or more control flow constructs or other non-data flowconstructs.

A graphical program may also optionally comprise a user interface orfront panel. The user interface may be contained in the block diagram ofthe graphical program or may be contained in one or more separate panelsor windows (or both). The user interface of a graphical program mayinclude various graphical user interface elements or front panelobjects, such as user interface controls and/or indicators, thatrepresent or display the respective input and/or output that will beused by the graphical program or VI, and may include other icons whichrepresent devices being controlled. The user interface or front panelmay be comprised in a single window of user interface elements, or maycomprise a plurality of individual windows each having one or more userinterface elements, wherein the individual windows may optionally betiled together. As another example, the user interface or front panelmay comprise user interface or front panel objects, e.g., the GUI,embedded in the block diagram. The user interface of a graphical programmay display only output, only input, or both input and output. The term“front panel” refers to a user interface wherein the user is able tointeractively control or manipulate the input being provided to thegraphical program and view resulting output. Any of various types ofprograms may include a user interface or front panel, includinggraphical programs, text-based programs, etc.

Examples of graphical program development environments that may be usedto create graphical programs include LabVIEW, DasyLab, and DiaDem fromNational Instruments, VEE from Agilent, WiT from Coreco, Vision ProgramManager from PPT Vision, SoftWIRE from Measurement Computing, Simulinkfrom the MathWorks, Sanscript from Northwoods Software, Khoros fromKhoral Research, SnapMaster from HEM Data, VisSim from Visual Solutions,ObjectBench by SES (Scientific and Engineering Software), and VisiDAQfrom Advantech, among others. In the preferred embodiment, the systemuses the LabVIEW graphical programming system available from NationalInstruments.

A program for performing an instrumentation, measurement, network,automation or simulation function, such as measuring phenomena of a UnitUnder Test (UUT) or device, controlling or modeling instruments,controlling or measuring a system or process, managing a network, or formodeling or simulating devices, may be referred to as a virtualinstrument (VI).

As shown in FIG. 1, at least one of the computer systems 82 and/or 90may be referred to as the “main” computer system, i.e., the computersystem used by the user in creating, using and/or executing aconfiguration diagram. For example, computer system 82 may be referredto as the main computer system. Thus, the computer system 82 may includea display device operable to display a graphical user interface (GUI).The graphical user interface may comprise any type of graphical userinterface, e.g., depending on the computing platform. The GUI may beuseful in assembling, creating, using and/or executing a configurationdiagram as described herein. Multiple computer systems may also be usedin assembling a configuration diagram.

As described below, a configuration diagram may comprise one or moredevice icons which each correspond to a device in the system. Aconfiguration diagram may also comprise one or more program icons whicheach correspond to a program in the system. A configuration diagram mayalso comprise one or more system icons and/or one or more applicationicons or project icons. A configuration diagram may comprise variousother icons, e.g., for I/O channels or data points of a device. Aconfiguration diagram may also display connections between icons, suchas physical connections between device icons and/or invocation orcaller/callee connections between program icons.

As described below, the configuration diagram may be useful inrepresenting the configuration of a system, e.g., for documentation orspecification purposes. The configuration design may also be useful indeploying programs among a plurality of devices in the system. Theconfiguration diagram may also be used in creating one or more programsand deploying these created programs in the system. The configurationdiagram may further be useful in displaying and/or executing anapplication comprising a plurality of programs distributed among aplurality of devices in a system. The configuration diagram may furtherbe useful in controlling device or program execution. The configurationdiagram may be used for other purposes as well. The display device mayalso be operable to display a graphical program block diagram of adeployed program, or other source code of a deployed program. Thedisplay device may also be operable to display a graphical userinterface or front panel of deployed programs, wherein the GUI or frontpanel of deployed programs may be selectively displayed using theconfiguration diagram.

The computer system 82 and/or 90 may include a memory medium(s) on whichone or more computer programs or software components according to oneembodiment of the present invention may be stored. For example, thememory medium may store one or more programs which are executable tocreate, present and/or allow use of a configuration diagram as describedherein. Also, the memory medium may store a programming developmentenvironment application used to create and/or execute programs. Forexample, the memory medium may store a graphical programming developmentenvironment application used to create and/or execute graphicalprograms, such as LabVIEW. The memory medium may also store variousprograms in the system. The memory medium may also store operatingsystem software, as well as other software for operation of the computersystem.

The term “memory medium” is intended to include an installation medium,e.g., a CD-ROM, floppy disks 104, or tape device; a computer systemmemory or random access memory such as DRAM, SRAM, EDO RAM, Rambus RAM,etc.; or a non-volatile memory such as a magnetic media, e.g., a harddrive, or optical storage. The memory medium may comprise other types ofmemory as well, or combinations thereof. In addition, the memory mediummay be located in a first computer in which the programs are executed,or may be located in a second different computer which connects to thefirst computer over a network, such as the Internet. In the latterinstance, the second computer may provide program instructions to thefirst computer for execution.

The software programs which implement embodiments of the presentinvention may be stored in a memory medium of the respective computer82, or in a memory medium of another computer, and executed by the CPU.The CPU executing code and data from the memory medium thus may comprisea means for performing the methods described herein. For example, theCPU executing code and data from the memory medium may comprise a meansfor graphically specifying or creating a configuration diagram, creatingapplications or programs utilizing a configuration diagram and/orenabling a user to graphically distribute, deploy, configure and/orexecute programs among a plurality of different devices or nodes in asystem according to the description herein.

FIGS. 2A and 2B—Instrumentation and Industrial Automation Systems

The following describes embodiments of the present invention involvedwith creating distributed applications which perform test, measurementand/or automation functions, including control and/or modeling ofinstrumentation or industrial automation hardware. However, it is notedthat the present invention can be used for a plethora of applicationsand is not limited to instrumentation or industrial automationapplications. In other words, the following description is exemplaryonly, and the present invention may be used in any of various types ofsystems. Thus, the system and method of the present invention isoperable to be used in any of various types of applications, includingdistributed systems which include other types of devices such asmultimedia devices, video devices, audio devices, telephony devices,Internet devices, network devices, etc.

FIG. 2A illustrates an exemplary instrumentation system 100 which mayimplement embodiments of the invention. The system 100 comprises a hostcomputer 82 which connects to one or more measurement devices orinstruments. The host computer 82 may comprise a CPU, a display screen,memory, and one or more input devices such as a mouse or keyboard asshown. Each of (or at least a subset of) the measurement devices mayinclude a processor and/or a programmable hardware element, and may becapable of receiving and executing programs in a distributedapplication. The computer 82 may couple to one or more other computers,such as computer 90, over a network, wherein the one or more othercomputers may form part of the distributed system. The computer 82 mayoperate with the one or more measurement devices to analyze, measure orcontrol a unit under test (UUT) or process 150, to perform simulation ofa system, such as hardware-in-the-loop simulation, to manage a network,or to perform system automation, among others.

The one or more measurement devices or instruments may include a GPIBinstrument 112 and associated GPIB interface card 122, a dataacquisition board 114 and associated signal conditioning circuitry 124,a VXI instrument 116, a PXI instrument 118, a video device or camera 132and associated image acquisition (or machine vision) card 134, a motioncontrol device 136 and associated motion control interface card 138,and/or one or more computer based instrument cards 142, among othertypes of devices.

The GPIB instrument 112 may be coupled to the computer 82 via the GPIBinterface card 122 provided by the computer 82. In a similar manner, thevideo device 132 may be coupled to the computer 82 via the imageacquisition card 134, and the motion control device 136 may be coupledto the computer 82 through the motion control interface card 138. Thedata acquisition board 114 may be coupled to the computer 82, and mayinterface through signal conditioning circuitry 124 to the UUT. Thesignal conditioning circuitry 124 may comprise an SCXI (SignalConditioning extensions for Instrumentation) chassis comprising one ormore SCXI modules 126.

The GPIB card 122, the image acquisition card 134, the motion controlinterface card 138, and the DAQ card 114 are typically plugged in to anI/O slot in the computer 82, such as a PCI bus slot, a PC Card slot, oran ISA, EISA or MicroChannel bus slot provided by the computer 82.However, these cards 122, 134, 138 and 114 are shown external tocomputer 82 for illustrative purposes. These devices may also beconnected to the computer 82 through a serial bus or through othermeans.

The VXI chassis or instrument 116 may be coupled to the computer 82 viaa VXI bus, MXI bus, or other serial or parallel bus provided by thecomputer 82. The computer 82 may include VXI interface logic, such as aVXI, MXI or GPIB interface card (not shown), which interfaces to the VXIchassis 116. The PXI chassis or instrument may be coupled to thecomputer 82 through the computer's PCI bus.

A serial instrument (not shown) may also be coupled to the computer 82through a serial port, such as an RS-232 port, USB (Universal Serialbus) or IEEE 1394 or 1394.2 bus, provided by the computer 82. In typicalinstrumentation control systems an instrument will not be present ofeach interface type, and in fact many systems may only have one or moreinstruments of a single interface type, such as only GPIB instruments.

The measurement devices or instruments may be coupled to a unit undertest (UUT) or process 150, or may be coupled to receive field signals,typically generated by transducers. The system 100 may be used in a dataacquisition and control application, in a test and measurementapplication, an image processing or machine vision application, aprocess control application, a man-machine interface application, anetwork management application, an automation system, a simulationapplication, or a hardware-in-the-loop validation application, amongothers.

FIG. 2B illustrates an exemplary industrial automation system 160 whichmay implement embodiments of the invention. The industrial automationsystem 160 is similar to the instrumentation or test and measurementsystem 100 shown in FIG. 2A. Elements which are similar or identical toelements in FIG. 2A have the same reference numerals for convenience.The system 160 may comprise a computer 82 which connects to one or moredevices or instruments. The computer 82 may comprise a CPU, a displayscreen, memory, and one or more input devices such as a mouse orkeyboard as shown. Each of the devices shown in FIG. 2B may include aprocessor and/or a programmable hardware element, and may be capable ofreceiving and executing programs in a distributed application. Thecomputer 82 may couple to one or more other computers, such as computer90, over a network, wherein the one or more other computers may formpart of the distributed system. The computer 82 may operate with the oneor more devices to measure or control a process or device 150. Thedistributed system may perform an automation function, such as MMI (ManMachine Interface), SCADA (Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition),portable or distributed data acquisition, process control, advancedanalysis, or other control.

The one or more devices may include a data acquisition board 114 andassociated signal conditioning circuitry 124, a PXI instrument 118, avideo device 132 and associated image acquisition card 134, a motioncontrol device 136 and associated motion control interface card 138, afieldbus device 170 and associated fieldbus interface card 172, a PLC(Programmable Logic Controller) 176, a serial instrument 182 andassociated serial interface card 184, or a distributed data acquisitionsystem 185, such as the Fieldpoint system available from NationalInstruments, among other types of devices.

The DAQ card 114, the PXI chassis 118, the video device 132, and theimage acquisition card 134 may be connected to the computer 82 asdescribed above. The serial instrument 182 may be coupled to thecomputer 82 through a serial interface card 184, or through a serialport, such as an RS-232 port, provided by the computer 82. The PLC 176may couple to the computer 82 through a serial port, Ethernet port, or aproprietary interface. The fieldbus interface card 172 may be comprisedin the computer 82 and may interface through a fieldbus network to oneor more fieldbus devices. Each of the DAQ card 114, the serial card 184,the fieldbus card 172, the image acquisition card 134, and the motioncontrol card 138 are typically plugged in to an I/O slot in the computer82 as described above. However, these cards 114, 184, 172, 134, and 138are shown external to computer 82 for illustrative purposes. In typicalindustrial automation systems a device will not be present of eachinterface type, and in fact many systems may only have one or moredevices of a single interface type, such as only PLCs. The devices maybe coupled to the device or process 150.

As used herein, the term “measurement device” or “instrument” isintended to include any of the devices that are adapted to be connectedto a computer system as shown in FIGS. 2A, 2B and 3, traditional“stand-alone” instruments, as well as other types of measurement andcontrol devices. The term “measurement function” may include any type ofdata acquisition, measurement or control function, such as thatimplemented by the instruments shown in FIGS. 2A, 2B and 3. For example,the term “measurement function” includes acquisition and/or processingof an image. As described below, a distributed program (e.g., adistributed graphical program) may be created that implements ameasurement function. For example, the program may be used to acquire asignal and perform the measurement function on the acquired signal.

In the embodiments of FIGS. 2A and 2B above, one or more of the variousinstruments may couple to the computer 82 over a network, such as theInternet. In one embodiment, the user operates to select one or moretarget instruments or devices from a plurality of possible targetdevices for programming or configuration according to the methodsdescribed herein. Thus the user may create a program on a computer, suchas computer 82, and use the program in conjunction with one or moretarget devices or instruments that are remotely located from thecomputer 82 and coupled to the computer 82 through a network. Asdescribed below, according to one embodiment of the invention, the usermay use a configuration diagram to graphically create and distribute ordeploy programs among a number of different devices in a distributedsystem. The configuration diagram may also be used to initiate executionof the programs, and optionally to control and/or monitor execution ofthe programs.

Software programs which perform data acquisition, analysis and/orpresentation, e.g., for measurement, instrumentation control, industrialautomation, or simulation, such as in the applications shown in FIGS. 2Aand 2B, may be referred to as virtual instruments.

Although in the preferred embodiment the methods described herein areinvolved with measurement and automation applications, including dataacquisition/generation, analysis, and/or display, and for controlling ormodeling instrumentation or industrial automation hardware, as notedabove the present invention can be used for a plethora of applicationsand is not limited to measurement, instrumentation or industrialautomation applications. In other words, FIGS. 2A and 2B are exemplaryonly, and the present invention may be used in any of various types ofsystems. Thus, the system and method is operable for creating and usingconfiguration diagrams for deploying programs in distributed systems forany of various types of applications.

Network System

As one example, embodiments of the invention may be used to create,configure, deploy and/or execute devices and/or programs for networksystems. Exemplary network systems may include a main computer systemthat couples to one or more network devices, such as switches, bridges,routers, hubs, network processors, etc. A configuration diagram for anetwork system may include device icons that represent the variousnetwork devices, as well as program icons that represent programs in thesystem. Programs may be created, configured and/or deployed among thenetwork devices, (including having their invocation relationshipschanged) using the configuration diagram and the methods describedherein. Commercial (or custom) network management products may also beconfigured and/or deployed according to various embodiments of themethods described below, e.g., network management products for mapping,analyzing, configuring, controlling or otherwise managing networkarchitecture, operations, and/or functionality. For example, networkfunctions may include, but are not limited to, network traffic loggingand/or traffic analysis, e.g., data throughput, latency, topography,etc., as well as routing, testing, and so forth. Examples of networkmanagement products include NetView provided by IBM Tivoli Software, BMCSoftware's Patrol, and SANPoint Control by Veritas Software Corporation,among others.

FIG. 3—Distributed Measurement System

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an exemplary distributed measurementsystem. As shown, an exemplary measurement system may include a computersystem 82 having a display. The computer system 82 may couple throughone or more networks or buses to various measurement devices.

In this exemplary embodiment, the computer 82 may couple through theInternet to a second computer 90 and to a database 92. The computer 82may couple to a PCI/PMXI chassis 118 comprising one or more DAQ cards,which in turn couple to one or more Plug & Play analog sensors 123 orother sensors 127. The computer 82 may couple to a distributed I/Osystem (or distributed data acquisition system) 185, such as theFieldpoint system available from National Instruments, which in turncouples to one or more Plug & Play analog sensors 123 or other sensors127. The computer 82 may couple to a PCI/PXI chassis 118 comprising oneor more industrial network cards, such as a CAN interface card 173 and aserial interface card 184, which in turn may couple to one or morenetworked smart sensors 125. The computer 82 may couple to a PXI system118 and/or distributed I/O system 185, which in turn couples to one ormore DAQ modules 115 connected in a wired manner, such as through aserial, parallel, or network bus. The DAQ modules 115 may couple to oneor more Plug & Play analog sensors 123, smart sensors 125, or othersensors 127. The PXI system 118 and/or distributed I/O system 185 mayalso couple to one or more wireless DAQ modules 117 connected in awireless manner. The wireless DAQ module 117 may couple to one or morePlug & Play analog sensors 123 and/or other sensors 127.

The exemplary distributed measurement system may include a RIO(Reconfigurable I/O) system as described in U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 60/312,242 titled “System and Method forGraphically Creating, Deploying and Executing Programs in a DistributedSystem” filed Aug. 14, 2001.

The computer system 82 may serve as the central console (or maincomputer system) of the distributed measurement system. The display ofthe computer system 82 may be used to assemble a configuration diagramof the distributed measurement system. The configuration diagram mayinclude various device icons that represent or correspond to the variousphysical (“real”) devices, and possibly virtual or simulated devices,that are present in the distributed measurement system. Theconfiguration diagram shown on the display may also be used to create,configure and/or deploy programs to any of the various devices in thedistributed measurement system.

The main computer system 82 may be part of the system that executesprograms during operation of the system. Alternatively, the maincomputer system 82 may be used solely to create a configuration diagramand dispatch, configure or deploy programs to the various devices. Inthis latter embodiment, after deployment, the various programs mayexecute without further involvement of the main computer system 82.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram for the system shown inFIG. 3 would resemble, e.g., be similar or identical in appearance to,the block diagram shown in FIG. 3. Thus, for the physical systemrepresented by the block diagram in FIG. 3, the configuration diagramfor this system that is displayed on a computer display may also havethe appearance of FIG. 3. Thus one goal of the configuration diagram fora system is to represent in an intuitive manner the system that theconfiguration diagram represents. Other examples of configurationdiagrams are shown in FIGS. 21A and 21B. Simple configuration diagramsused to illustrate graphical deployment of programs are shown in FIGS.15-20. FIGS. 21A and 21B illustrate more complex configuration diagrams.

FIG. 4—Computer System Block Diagram

FIG. 4 is a block diagram representing one embodiment of the computersystem 82 and/or 90 illustrated in FIGS. 1, 2A, 2B or 3. It is notedthat any type of computer system configuration or architecture can beused as desired, and FIG. 4 illustrates a representative PC embodiment.It is also noted that the computer system may be a general purposecomputer system, a computer implemented on a VXI card installed in a VXIchassis, a computer implemented on a PXI card installed in a PXIchassis, or other types of embodiments. Elements of a computer notnecessary to understand the present description have been omitted forsimplicity.

The computer may include at least one central processing unit or CPU 160which is coupled to a processor or host bus 162. The CPU 160 may be anyof various types, including an x86 processor, e.g., a Pentium class, aPowerPC processor, a CPU from the SPARC family of RISC processors, aswell as others. Main memory 166 is coupled to the host bus 162 by meansof memory controller 164. The main memory 166 may store one or moreprograms which implement an embodiment of the invention, and may alsostore one or more programs which may deployed to devices in adistributed system according to an embodiment of the invention. The mainmemory may also store a program development environment, operatingsystem software, as well as other software for operation of the computersystem.

The host bus 162 may be coupled to an expansion or input/output bus 170by means of a bus controller 168 or bus bridge logic. The expansion bus170 may be the PCI (Peripheral Component Interconnect) expansion bus,although other bus types can be used. The computer 82 comprises a videodisplay subsystem 180, hard drive 182, and network interface 181,coupled to the expansion bus 170. The expansion bus 170 may also includevarious exemplary devices such as a data acquisition board 114 and areconfigurable measurement device or instrument 190. Each of the dataacquisition card 114 and the reconfigurable measurement device orinstrument 190 may include a processor and memory and/or a programmablehardware element for receiving and executing deployed programs.

FIG. 5—System for Creating and Using Configuration Diagrams

FIG. 5 illustrates the software programs of an exemplary system forcreating and using configuration diagrams according to an embodiment ofthe invention. FIG. 5 illustrates an exemplary system which includes thedistributed LabVIEW integrated development environment (IDE). The systemshown in FIG. 5 may be used for managing a distributed system asdescribed herein.

As shown, the system includes a graphical program editor or graphicalprogram development environment, e.g., a LabVIEW editor 704. The systemalso may include one or more graphical programs, e.g., may include ablock diagram and/or front panel 706 of a graphical program. The blockdiagram and front panel may be created in any of various graphicalprogram development environments.

The system may also include a system editor 732. The system editor maybe used for creating a configuration diagram 712, also referred to as asystem panel. In the present application, the terms “system panel” andconfiguration diagram” are used interchangeably. The configurationdiagram 712 may include a plurality of nodes or icons 714 whichrepresent items 718 in a system, such as devices, machines, programs,applications, projects or other elements in the configuration diagram712. The configuration diagram 712 may also illustrate the relationshipbetween nodes using connections or links 716 as described herein.

The systems editor 732 may also include configuration panels 734, whichare similar to property pages. The configuration panels 734 may includesystem configuration panels 736 for configuring different systemconfiguration items such as network parameters 738, e.g., IP, security,etc 740. The configuration panels 734 may also include input/outputconfiguration panels 742 for configuring I/O points. The configurationpanels may also include the ability for configuring data points (e.g.,tags) 744 including methods, properties and panels 746. Theconfiguration panels 734 may also include service configuration panels750 for configuring various services, as described below.

The system described in FIG. 5 may be used for a plurality of differentpurposes. The system may be used to represent a system, deploy programsin the system, distribute data among devices or programs in the system,and perform various other functions. The system may provide variouslevels of views. For example, the system configuration diagram maypresent a view of the entire system, i.e., an entire system view; anindividual system view, i.e., a view of individual system within theentire system; an application view, i.e., a view of the various programsor software applications present in the system; and a programdevelopment view, such as a view of a program development environment,such as LabVIEW, Visual Basic, etc. In one embodiment, the systemincludes tight integration with a graphical program developmentenvironment such as LabVIEW. The configuration diagram may alsorepresent the system in a hierarchical manner, and the user may be ableto “drill down” in the configuration diagram to view greater detail onvarious subsystems or devices.

Flowcharts

The flowcharts described herein illustrate various embodiments of thepresent invention, and various other embodiments are also contemplated.It is noted that various steps in the flowcharts described herein mayoccur concurrently or in different orders than that shown. Further, somesteps are optional and may be omitted, and/or additional steps not shownmay be added, as desired. In general, where the context so indicates,steps performed in the flowcharts below may be performed automaticallyor programmatically, i.e., by a software program, and not by manual useraction.

FIG. 6—Flowchart

FIG. 6 is a flowchart diagram illustrating operation of the usercreating or assembling a configuration diagram representing adistributed system, displaying program icons corresponding to programspresent in the distributed system, and configuring or deploying one ormore programs to various devices in the distributed system. FIG. 6illustrates one embodiment of the invention, and it is noted thatvarious embodiments of the invention may be used to create, view and useconfiguration diagrams using the concepts or methods described herein.

As shown, in step 202 a developer or user may assemble or create aconfiguration diagram which includes device icons that represent devicesin the distributed system. Thus, in a system which comprises two or moredevices coupled to each other, such as through a network, a serial orparallel bus, or through wireless means, etc., the user may create orassemble a configuration diagram which includes a device icon for eachof the devices, or a subset of the devices, present in the system. Theconfiguration diagram may also include program icons corresponding toprograms resident in the system, e.g., in the various devices.

In one embodiment, the user may manually select device icons from agraphical user interface, e.g., from a palette or menu, to be displayedin the configuration diagram. The user may also connect the device iconson the configuration diagram, such as by using a pointing device. Forexample, in creating or modifying a configuration diagram, the user canassociate, e.g., drag and drop, or otherwise connect, a first deviceicon to a second device icon. For example, the user may use a pointingdevice (e.g., a mouse), and may possibly use a “wiring tool” icon on thedisplay, to connect a first device icon to a second device icon. Thismay cause a connection, e.g., a wire, to appear between the device iconsto indicate a relationship or coupling between the two (or more) deviceicons.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may be automatically orprogrammatically created by the computer system 82, or by separateserver system 90, based on an automatic detection of devices coupled tothe computer system 82. As used herein, the terms “programmatically” or“automatically” mean that the particular function is performed bysoftware, as opposed to being performed manually by the user. Forexample, Plug & Play software, or other similar detection software, maydetect devices present in the system and automatically display deviceicons in the configuration diagram representing these detected devices.The software may also automatically display connections or links betweenthe device icons which indicate the detected buses or interfacesconnecting the devices. In another embodiment, at least a portion of theconfiguration diagram may be automatically or programmatically created,and a portion of the configuration diagram may be created at leastpartly based on manual user input. For example, software may detect anddisplay device icons and links corresponding to a subset of the devicesin the system, and the user may select (and “wire up” or connect) deviceicons corresponding to other (e.g., non-detected or virtual) devicesfrom a palette or menu.

The device icons preferably have an appearance which corresponds to thedevice they represent. This allows the viewer to easily view andunderstand what devices are present in the distributed system. In oneembodiment, information may be displayed proximate to various deviceicons to indicate information about the device, such as type of device,geographic location of the device, calibration information, etc. Thisinformation may be selectively displayed when the user selects (e.g.,right clicks) a respective device icon. In other embodiments, theinformation may be displayed in response to user activity with respectto the device icon, e.g., in response to the user right-clicking on thedevice icon, or in response to the cursor “hovering” over the deviceicon, etc.

The connection that is displayed between two device icons may be contextsensitive. In other words, the connection that is displayed or createdon the display may have a context or appearance that is associated withthe types of devices that are being connected, or that is associatedwith the type of physical connection between the respective devices. Forexample, the PCI bus may be shown with a first type of visualrepresentation, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) connection may be shownwith a second type of visual representation, and an Ethernet connectionmay be shown with a third type of visual representation. Alternatively,or in addition, the connection that is displayed or created on thedisplay may have a context or appearance that is associated with thedata type of the data, or type of material, being transmitted betweenthe devices.

In one embodiment, Plug & Play software or other similar detectionsoftware may detect programs present in the system and automatically orprogrammatically display program icons in the configuration diagramrepresenting these detected programs. The software may alsoautomatically display connections or links between the program iconswhich indicate the detected invocation relationships of the programs. Inanother embodiment, respective portions of the configuration diagram maybe automatically or programmatically created, and a portion of theconfiguration diagram may be created at least partly based on manualuser input. For example, software may detect and display program iconsand links corresponding to a subset of the programs in the system, andthe user may use a GUI to register other programs present in the system.The program icons may be displayed directly in the configurationdiagram, e.g., proximate to the devices in which they reside, or linkedto the device icons. Alternatively, the program icons may initiallyappear on a separate palette or window, e.g., for deployment to thevarious devices. The user may manually “connect” or “wire up” linksbetween various program icons to establish or modify invocationrelationships among the programs as described further below.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram is operable to perform typechecking of connections between device icons, e.g., to verify that afirst device corresponding to a first device icon can interface to asecond device corresponding to a second device icon. For example, whenthe user draws a link between a first device icon and a second deviceicon, software may analyze the interface types of the two devices toensure that the connection is proper. The configuration diagram may alsobe operable to perform type checking of connections between programicons, e.g., to verify that a first program corresponding to a firstprogram icon can invoke (or be invoked by) a second programcorresponding to a second program icon. For example, when the user drawsa link between a first program icon and a second program icon, softwaremay analyze the program types of the two programs to ensure that theinvocation can be performed.

In addition, program icons may also have an appearance to indicate thetype of program, e.g., graphical program, text-based program, hardwareconfiguration program, etc. Also, the connection that is displayedbetween two program icons may be context sensitive. For example, theconnection between two program icons may have a context or appearancethat is associated with the type of connection between the programs,e.g., caller/callee and direction (e.g., using an arrow), event passing,etc.

The configuration diagram may be used to define all of the desiredsystem components, including measurement phenomena, transducers,connector blocks, cabling, measurement hardware, and program components.The configuration diagram may also be used to enable distributedmanagement of the system components, including distributed definition ofcomponents, discovery of local and remote components that are presentand virtual, web service based interaction, etc. For example, discoverymay include not only determining the presence of devices, but may alsoinclude determining each device's configuration, sub-devices,connectivity between devices, and so on.

In one embodiment, the user may assemble a configuration diagram thatrepresents a system that the user desires. Thus, the user may selectamong device icons in a palette and generate a configuration diagramrepresenting a desired system. In this embodiment, the configurationdiagram is a specification of a desired system. A configuration diagrammay also include a first portion that represents an actual system (oneor more physically present devices) and a second portion that representsa desired system (one or more non-present devices).

In one embodiment, the user may use the configuration diagram as amechanism for specifying devices to be purchased from a vendor. Forexample, the user can assemble a configuration diagram including deviceicons (and/or program icons) which represent devices (and/or programs)that the user desires to use or purchase for his/her system. The usermay then connect to a server computer system and provide theconfiguration diagram as a specification for the devices and/or programsthe user desires to purchase. The server computer system, which may belocated at a manufacturing site, may receive the configuration diagram,determine the desired devices (and/or programs) from the configurationdiagram, and present information to the user indicating the total costfor the requested devices (and/or programs). The user may then choose topurchase one or more of the recommended devices (and/or programs) fromthe server computer system. These devices may then be shipped to theuser. In another embodiment, the server may programmatically query thedevices and/or programs present in the user system, and generate aconfiguration diagram that is displayed on the user's computer systemrepresenting the current state of the user's system. The user may thenadd device icons and/or program icons from a palette on the server orthe client computer to indicate desired modifications to the usersystem. This updated configuration diagram may then be provided back tothe server as a purchase request as described above.

In step 204 the user may create one or more programs which perform adesired function within the distributed system. Alternatively, or inaddition, one or more programs may be automatically or programmaticallycreated (created by a software program), based on user input orrequirements. For example, the computer system may display a graphicaluser interface which is used by the user to enter requirements ordesired operation of a program. The system may then programmaticallycreate a program based on these requirements. This programmatic creationof programs may be performed by the user's computer system 82 or aseparate server computer system 90.

The user (or computer system) may create one or more text-based programsin text-based programming languages such as C, C++, Fortran, Basic,Cobol, Java, etc. Software programs may be created or used which aresoftware objects or software components such as C++ objects, ActiveXcontrols, Java objects, etc. The user may also create one or moregraphical programs in various graphical programming developmentenvironments. In the preferred embodiment, the computer system includesthe LabVIEW graphical programming development system for creatingLabVIEW programs. As described below, the user may create and/or modifyprograms using the configuration diagram. This operation is discussedwith respect to FIGS. 26, 27, 32 and 33.

Alternatively, the user may simply use one or more pre-existing programsthat have been previously created. The user may use programs stored onthe computer system 82 or stored on any of the various remote devices.In addition, where the computer system 82 is coupled to a network, suchas the Internet, the user may use programs stored on a server (e.g.,server 90) coupled to the network.

For example, in a measurement application, a server at NationalInstruments may store or host various measurement applications orprograms that can be used by any user, or registered users. The user maychoose to connect to a server and view icons corresponding to theprograms, applications, or projects present on the server, andincorporate these program icons (or application or project icons) intothe configuration diagram using graphical association techniquesdescribed herein. The user may purchase a program by dragging anddropping a program icon from a palette displayed by the server 90 ontothe user's configuration diagram. The user may be required to submitpayment to purchase programs from a third party server. As describedabove, the user may also choose to connect to a server for programmaticgeneration of programs.

The user may also create one or more programs which perform a desiredfunction within the distributed system using the configuration diagram.For example, the user may create a graphical program which communicateswith one or more measurement devices by dragging and droppingcorresponding device icons into the graphical program diagram (or userinterface). As one example, the user may open a LabVIEW block diagramand create a While loop structure. The user may then drag and dropdevice icons corresponding to sensors into the While loop structure.This may cause the graphical program diagram to be configured to accessthese sensors and read data produced by these sensors. This operation isdescribed with respect to FIGS. 26 and 27A-E. The user may also drag anddrop icons representing data points or I/O channels into the graphicalprogram diagram (or user interface) to configure the graphical programto access (read or write) these data points or I/O channels. Programsmay also be created and/or modified in response to other actionsperformed by the user, as described herein.

In step 206 the system may display an iconic relationship view of thevarious programs, e.g., graphical programs, present within the system.The iconic relationship view may comprise icons (“program icons”)representing various programs, wherein the program icons may be arrangedand/or interconnected with links to indicate their relationship. Theprogram icons may be arranged proximate to, and/or connected by a linkto, the respective device icons corresponding to the devices in whichthe programs are stored. This may visually indicate which programs arestored on which devices. Alternatively, the iconic relationship view ofthe various programs may be displayed separately without the deviceicons. The iconic relationship view may comprise an object-orientedview, a hierarchy view, a tree view, a data flow view, an execution flowview, a control flow view, or combinations thereof.

Thus, in the case of a program which is configured as a hierarchy of amain program and one or more sub-programs, the system may display ahierarchy view comprising an icon representing the main program and anicon representing each of the one or more sub-programs. The relationshipview may also display connections or links between the program icons. Inthe hierarchy view, the program icons are arranged and are preferablyconnected to visually indicate the hierarchy. In the case of a pluralityof software objects configured to invoke methods and trigger events oneach other, the system may display an object-oriented view comprising anicon representing each of the programs, and possibly connectionsindicating the method invocation and/or event messaging. In the case ofa graphical program which is configured as a hierarchy of a maingraphical program and one or more sub-graphical programs (e.g., a mainVI and one or more sub-VIs), the system may display a hierarchy viewcomprising an icon representing each of the main graphical program, anicon representing each of the one or more sub-graphical programs, andconnections between the program icons to visually indicate thehierarchy. An example of a hierarchy view of graphical programs is shownin FIGS. 15-20 and 21B. This allows the viewer to easily view theprograms present in the system which may be used in configuring thedistributed system. In another embodiment, the program icons resident ina device may simply be displayed, without any type of relationship view.

The iconic relationship view of the various software programs may bedisplayed in a separate window on the display, or may be displayed inthe configuration diagram. For example, where most or all of theprograms are initially comprised in the main computer system 82, theprogram icons may be displayed in the configuration diagram proximate tothe device icon (or shown connected to the device icon) corresponding tothe main computer system 82, or in a separate window to avoid clutteringthe configuration diagram. In one embodiment, the user can selectvarious views of the configuration diagram, as described herein.

In step 206 the system may also display an iconic relationship view ofthe various devices present within the system. For example, the user maychoose a menu option, such as shown in FIG. 18, to display thecaller/callee relationships between different devices present in thedistributed system.

In one embodiment, the program icons may be visually displayedindicating an association with respective device icons representingrespective devices in which the programs are stored and/or executed. Forexample, the program icons may be visually displayed proximate torespective device icons representing respective devices in which theprograms are stored and/or executed. It should be noted that as usedherein, the term “proximate” refers to being on or near an item, e.g.,an icon, i.e., if a first icon is displayed proximate to a second icon,the first icon is sufficiently close to the second icon such that theuser would presume or understand an intended relationship between thetwo icons. Thus, a program icon may be located proximate to a deviceicon to represent the fact that the corresponding program is storedand/or executed on the corresponding device. In another embodiment, linkicons may be displayed coupling the program icons with the respectivedevice icons. Other graphical techniques associating the program iconswith the respective devices are also contemplated.

In step 208 the user may graphically configure program deployment and/orinvocation using the configuration diagram. The user may graphicallyconfigure program deployment and/or invocation by providing graphicaluser input to the configuration diagram to associate (e.g., drag anddrop), icons with other icons, change connections between icons, etc.

For example, in one embodiment the user may select various programicons, e.g., graphical program icons, from the relationship view (withinor outside the configuration diagram) and associate (e.g., drag anddrop) them with various device icons contained in the configurationdiagram. The user may also select a program icon and associate theprogram icon with another program icon in the configuration diagram.This may cause a deployment of a program to another device, or mayconfigure a program invocation relationship (caller/callee relationship)between programs, or may cause another type of operation. For example,the operation of associating program icons with device icons (or otherprogram icons) in the configuration diagram may operate to deploy,either immediately or when the use selects “apply”, the respectiveprograms on the various devices which correspond to the device icons.

Deploying a program may comprise: 1) moving the program from a firstdevice to a second device (where the program is deleted from the firstdevice), 2) copying the program from a first device to a second device(where the program remains stored on the first device), 3) transferringor moving the program from a first device to a second device for remoteexecution on the second device, wherein the program moved to the seconddevice is invoked for execution by a program on the first device, andwherein at least one program on the first device may be configured ormodified to invoke the moved program on the second device; 4)transferring remote execution of the program from a first device to asecond device, wherein the program is originally to be remotely invokedon the first device, and after the operation the program is remotelyinvoked on the second device, wherein the remote invocation is performedby a program or application on a different device, such as the maincomputer system (FIG. 11); or 5) creating a call or invocation in aprogram on the second device to invoke the program on the first device,wherein the program remains on the first device, and at least oneprogram on the second device may be configured or modified to invoke theprogram on the first device (FIG. 12). Further details of the deploymentof programs on various devices is described with respect to theflowcharts of FIGS. 9-12 and the screen shots of FIGS. 15-20. Variousother deployment operations are also contemplated.

As another example, in one embodiment the user may draw a link orconnection between two program icons to configure an invocationrelationship between the program icons. For example, the user mayposition a pointing device at a first program icon and draw a link fromthe first program icon to a second program icon. The displayed link mayinclude an arrow or other graphical means to indicate the direction ofthe invocation, i.e., that the first program icon is invoking the secondprogram icon, and not vice versa. This operation of drawing the linkbetween the first and second program icons may operate to modify thefirst program represented by the first program icon to invoke the secondprogram represented by the second program icon. In one embodiment, thesource code of the first program may be displayed, or a GUI may bedisplayed, so that the user can more precisely configure where and howthe first program invokes the second program.

The user may also select an existing link or connection displayedbetween two program icons and may associate (e.g., graphically modify ordrag and drop) the end of one link to a different program icon to changean invocation relationship among the programs. For example, theconfiguration diagram may initially display a link connecting a firstprogram icon with a second program icon, indicating that a first programrepresented by the first program icon invokes a second programrepresented by the second program icon. The user can select the end ofthe link proximate to the second program icon and graphically move ordrag this end of the link to a third program icon to configure the firstprogram to invoke a third program represented by the third program icon.

As another example, the user may select a device icon, or an iconrepresenting a data point or I/O channel, and associate (e.g., drag anddrop) the device icon with a program icon in the configuration diagram.This may be used in creating a program, e.g., may cause the creation ofcode in the program to access the device, data point, or I/O channel.For example, an icon representing a device, data point and/or I/Ochannel may be associated with or dropped in the source code or userinterface of a program, e.g., the block diagram or front panel of agraphical program. This may cause various operations to be performed, asdescribed below.

Various other operations using the configuration diagram are alsocontemplated.

The term “associate” used herein generally means or includes some typeof user input that is provided to indicate that one icon should beassociated with another icon. Each icon may be a device icon, programicon, a link (link icon) displayed between device icons and/or programicons, a data point icon, an I/O channel icon, or another icon thatrepresents an element in the system. The term “associate” includesvarious types of graphical techniques, such as drag and drop techniques,and use of graphical user interface elements, such as menus, dialogboxes, etc. The term “associate” also encompasses the use of speechrecognition techniques to indicate that one icon should be associatedwith another icon.

The “association” may indicate that some relationship should beestablished between the two icons (a relationship between programsand/or devices represented by the icons, e.g., an invocation orcaller/callee relationship, etc.), or that some operation should beperformed (e.g., deployment of a program, creation or modification of aprogram, etc.).

As noted above, the operation of associating icons with other icons,e.g., associating program icons with device icons (or other programicons), in the configuration diagram may be performed with “drag anddrop” techniques, menu-based techniques, dialog box techniques, speechrecognition techniques, or other techniques. The “drag and drop” methodmay comprise the user selecting an icon (device icon, program icon, linkicon, etc.) with a pointing device (e.g., a mouse) and dragging the iconon the display to be on top of or proximate to another icon, such asanother device icon, program icon, or link icon. Drag and droptechniques are well known in the art. Other similar graphical inputtechniques may also be used.

As one example, the operation of associating program icons with deviceicons in the configuration diagram may operate to deploy, or cause to bedeployed, the respective programs on the various devices whichcorrespond to the device icons. Stated another way, if the user selectsa first program icon and associates (e.g., drags and drops) this firstprogram icon on to a first device icon which represents a first device,and the user optionally selects “apply”, this operates to deploy a firstprogram corresponding to that first program icon on to the first devicewhich corresponds to that first device icon. The “drag and drop” methodmay comprise the user selecting the first program icon with a pointingdevice (e.g., a mouse) and dragging the first program icon on thedisplay to be on top of or proximate to the first device icon. Thisprovides a greatly simplified mechanism for deploying programs onvarious devices in a distributed system. Further details of thedeployment of programs on various devices is described with respect tothe flowcharts of FIGS. 9-12 and the screen shots of FIGS. 15-20.

In step 210 the configuration diagram may be updated as the userperforms iconic operations, such as the deployment operations discussedabove. Thus the configuration diagram may display an updated iconicrelationship view of the distributed programs and distributed devices asthe user associates (e.g., drags and drops) the program icons on thedevice icons, the program icons on other program icons, the device iconson other device icons, etc. For example, as the user drags and dropsprogram icons (e.g., from the configuration diagram) on to variousdevice icons on the configuration diagram in step 208, the system mayoperate to display the updated relationship (e.g., hierarchy) ofprograms proximate to, e.g., underneath, the respective device icon towhere they have been deployed. For example, FIGS. 15-20 illustrate aconfiguration diagram which shows a main graphical program 402 and foursub-graphical programs 404A-D at the next level of the hierarchy.

In one embodiment, when the user associates program icons with variousdevice icons contained in the configuration diagram, the configurationdiagram is immediately updated accordingly, but this operation ofassociating does not operate to deploy programs at that time. Rather,the user may be required to select an “apply” feature for the deploymentto actually occur. This allows the user to view various configurationdiagram options before a deployment actually occurs. In anotherembodiment, the system may provide a configuration diagram previewwindow where the user can view proposed changes to the configurationdiagram prior to these changes being made in the actual configurationdiagram. In another embodiment, the configuration diagram (and/or thepreview window) may support multiple levels of undo/redo, therebyallowing the user to “back out” changes that have been made.

FIG. 7—Creating a Configuration Diagram

FIG. 7 is a flowchart diagram illustrating an exemplary embodiment ofoperation of creation or assembly of a configuration diagramrepresenting a system.

As shown in FIG. 7, a developer or user may assemble or create (and/or asoftware program may create) a configuration diagram which includesdevice icons that represent devices in the distributed system. Theconfiguration diagram may also include program icons that representprograms in the system. The configuration diagram may further includeother icons or elements, such as links displayed between device iconsand/or program icons, icons representing I/O channels, iconsrepresenting data points or tags, and icons representing other elementsin the system, e.g., named configurations (such as named channels) etc.

Thus, in a distributed system which comprises two or more devicesconnected to each other, such as through a network, a serial or parallelbus, or through wireless means, etc., the user or system may create orassemble a configuration diagram which includes a device icon for eachof the devices present in the system, program icons created for programsresident in the devices, and icons representing I/O channels, datapoints, named configurations etc. The configuration diagram may at leastpartially (or completely) be automatically or programmatically created.For example, the configuration diagram may be created by softwareexecuting on the computer system 82 which is part of the system, or theconfiguration diagram may be created by software executing on a separateserver computer 90 which analyzes the system and generates theconfiguration diagram for the computer system 82.

In step 222 the computer system 82 may display a graphical userinterface, such as a configuration dialog, which may be useful increating a configuration diagram. An exemplary configuration dialog isshown in FIG. 14. The configuration dialog may have various appearances,and FIG. 14 is an exemplary embodiment. The configuration dialog mayinclude various tabs, may include the ability to discover or manuallyadd new devices, and may visually display the various devices present(or “virtually present”) in the distributed system. The configurationdialog may include the ability to discover or manually add new programs,and may visually display the various program present (or “virtuallypresent”) in the distributed system. The configuration dialog may alsoinclude the ability to discover or manually add I/O channels, datapoints, or other items relevant to the system. In one embodiment wherethe configuration diagram is mostly or completely automatically orprogrammatically created, the configuration dialog may not be displayed.

In step 224 the computer system 82 may automatically or programmaticallydetect devices coupled to the computer system 82 and/or programs presentin the system. For example, Plug & Play software executing in thecomputer system 82 may have previously (such as at system boot time)automatically detected Plug & Play devices and/or programs. Plug & Playsoftware may also be invoked from the configuration dialog. Otherapplication programs executing in the computer system 82 may alsoautomatically detect devices present in the distributed system, and maybe optionally invoked from the configuration dialog. For example, theMeasurement and Automation Explorer (MAX) software program from NationalInstruments may be used to automatically detect measurement andautomation devices (such as those shown in FIGS. 2A, 2B and 3) and/orprograms present in the distributed system. Software may alsoautomatically or programmatically detect other elements in the system,such as I/O channels, data points, named configurations, etc.

In one embodiment, a server (e.g., server 90) may access the system(e.g., computer system 82) over a network and automatically orprogrammatically detect elements in the system, such as devices coupledto the computer system 82, connections between devices, programsresident in the system, program relationships, I/O channels, datapoints, and possibly other elements. For example, a server 90 atNational Instruments may access a user's computer system 82 at a remotelocation and, optionally with the user's permission, detect devices andprograms installed in the user's system and cause a configurationdiagram to be displayed on the display of the user's computer system 82.

In step 226 the user may manually specify one or more devices, such asundetected devices. Thus, for those devices that were not automaticallydetected, the user may be required to manually specify these devices. Inone embodiment, all devices present in the distributed system areautomatically detected, and thus no manual specification is required. Instep 226 the user may also manually specify one or more programs, suchas undetected programs. The user may also manually specify otherelements.

In step 226 the user may also specify one or more non-present or“virtual” devices or programs. Thus, for those devices or programs whichthe user desires to be present in the distributed system, but which arenot actually currently physically present, the user may include a“placeholder” by creating a “virtual device icon” or “virtual programicon” that represents the non-present device or program, respectively.Virtual device icons and/or virtual program icons may also beautomatically or programmatically generated. For example, the user mayprovide input indicating the desired operation of the system representedby the configuration diagram, and the software may automatically displaya virtual device icon or virtual program icon representing a device orprogram, respectively, that the system may require to perform thedesired operation. Thus software may display suggested device or programicons based on the task requirements entered by the user. Virtualdevice/program icons are described further below.

In step 228 the user may select one or more devices, programs, and/orother elements for the distributed system. In other words, the user mayselect one or more devices, programs, and/or other elements to be notincluded in the distributed system shown in the configuration diagram.For those elements (devices, programs, etc.) that are selected to not beincluded, corresponding icons (device icons, program icons, etc.) maynot appear in the configuration diagram, or may have an alteredappearance, e.g., be “grayed out” or may be shown in a separate window.

For example, for those devices that are not selected (or are selected tonot be included), corresponding device icons may not appear in theconfiguration diagram, or may have an altered appearance. This featuremay be used in situations where there are devices coupled to thecomputer system 82, but the user does not desire to use these devices atthe present time. Thus the user can choose to deselect these devices sothat corresponding device icons will not appear in the configurationdiagram. This helps to prevent cluttering the configuration diagram withdevice icons corresponding to unused or undesired devices. In analternate embodiment, device icons corresponding to unused or undesireddevices may appear in a separate palette of the configuration diagram sothat they do not clutter the configuration diagram, yet the user isreminded of their presence. In another embodiment, device iconscorresponding to unused or undesired devices may appear in theconfiguration diagram, but these device icons may be “grayed out” orhave a different appearance to indicate they are not being used. In asimilar manner, for programs that are not selected to be included,corresponding program icons may not appear in the configuration diagram,or may have an altered appearance. Non-selected program icons may appearin a separate palette. This also helps to prevent cluttering theconfiguration diagram with program icons corresponding to unused orundesired programs.

In one embodiment, all detected devices, programs and other elements aredisplayed in the configuration diagram, and thus user selection in step228 may not be performed.

In step 230 the computer system 82 may display a configuration diagramincluding device icons, program icons, and possibly other elements. Inone embodiment, the configuration diagram includes device iconscorresponding to all detected devices. Alternatively, the computersystem 82 may display the configuration diagram with only the devicesselected in step 228. As described above, the device icons eachpreferably have an appearance that visually indicates the type ofdevice. The configuration diagram may display connections between thevarious device icons to visually indicate how the devices are coupled toeach other. These connections may be automatically displayed, or createdby the user, or both. As described above, the connections displayedbetween the devices may each have an appearance that visually indicatesthe type of connection. The configuration diagram may also includeprogram icons corresponding to programs, as well as other elementsdescribed herein.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may present differentviews, such as an entire system view, a subsystem view, an individualdevice view, a program relationship view, etc. Thus the user can selectdifferent options to display the configuration diagram with differentviews or different levels of granularity. Example configuration diagramsare shown in Figures FIGS. 21A and 21B, as well as in other Figures.

FIG. 21A illustrates an exemplary configuration diagram comprising aplurality of device icons. Certain of the device icons representcomputer systems, such as a “Data Mining” computer, a “MeasurementServer”, etc. Certain of the device icons represent measurement orautomation devices, such as a GPIB instrument, Fieldpoint Toaster, etc.

As noted above, the configuration diagram may include device icons thatrepresent the various devices in the distributed system. Each of thedevice icons preferably has an appearance which corresponds to thedevice it represents. Thus, a computer system 82 may be represented by adevice icon that has the appearance of a computer system. In a similarmanner, other device icons may have an appearance which is similar tothe appearance of the device it represents. This allows the viewer toeasily view and understand what devices are present in the distributedsystem.

In another embodiment, a program stored on a device may optionally berepresented by a device icon. This may be desirable where a certainprogram performs a “device-like” function. In another embodiment, anon-present device may have a device icon (virtual device icon), and thefunctionality of the non-present device may be simulated by a programexecuting on the main computer system or another device.

The configuration diagram may include connections (“connection icons”)such as lines, that are displayed between the various device icons toshow the interrelationship or coupling between the respective devices.In one embodiment, the connections that are displayed may be contextsensitive to indicate the type of interconnection or interface (e.g.,bus type), and/or the type of data or phenomena being provided betweenthe devices.

The displayed connections between device icons may correspond tocouplings between the plurality of devices. In one embodiment, thedisplayed connections between respective device icons may have anappearance to visually indicate a type of connection between the devicescorresponding to the respective device icons. For example, the displayedconnections may have an appearance that varies according to one or moreof color, size or shading to indicate the type of connection between thedevices. The appearance of the respective connections may indicatewhether the connection is a network connection, internal bus connection,external parallel bus connection, external serial bus connection (e.g.,USB or IEEE 1394) or a wireless connection. The appearance of therespective connections may also, or instead, indicate the type of dataor material flow between devices. In another embodiment, theconfiguration diagram may include labels displayed proximate to theconnections to visually indicate types of connection. The displayedconnections or displayed information may also operate to indicatingcabling or connection requirements, or recommend cabling or connectiontypes between devices.

In a measurement application, the device icons may represent the variousmeasurement devices present in the system, such as those shown in FIGS.2A, 2B and 3. For example, there may be device icons present for any oneor more of the various measurement or automation devices shown in FIGS.2A, 2B and 3. Thus, as one example, where a computer system is coupledto a PXI chassis that includes a plurality of PXI instrument cardscomprised in the chassis, the configuration diagram may include a deviceicon which represents the computer system, and a device icon whichrepresents each of the respective PXI instruments comprised in the PXIchassis. The configuration diagram may also optionally include a deviceicon which represents the PXI chassis, with further device iconscomprised in or proximate to the PXI chassis device icon representingeach of the respective PXI instrument cards. As another example, whereone or more smart sensors are present in the measurement system, deviceicons may be present which represent each of the various smart sensors.In a machine vision application, device icons may be present for a hostcomputer system 82, an image acquisition board 134, and a camera 132,which may be a smart camera as desired. Thus, the configuration diagramgraphically displays a plurality of device icons which represent thedevices that are present in the system, for which the user is desiringto configure or create an application.

In step 232 the user may manually or automatically arrange the variousicons on the configuration diagram. For example, the configurationdiagram may include an “auto-arrange” feature which automaticallyarranges the device icons and/or program icons to improve the appearanceof the configuration diagram. The user may also manually arrange thedevice icons and/or program icons on the configuration diagram as theuser desires.

In one embodiment, one or more of the devices may communicate geographiclocation information indicating the geographic location of the device.For example, where the distributed system includes a first computersystem or other device located in Austin, Tex. and a second computersystem or other device located in San Jose, Calif., each of thesedevices may communicate their geographic location information. The usermay optionally select a feature which causes the geographic location ofeach device (or a selected subset of devices) to be displayed on theconfiguration diagram. This enables the user to more readily understandthe distributed system.

The configuration diagram may include a “device view” that only showsinterconnected device icons. The configuration diagram may also includea “program view” that shows program icons. The program view may showonly program icons, or may show the program icons proximate therespective device icons on which they are stored. As discussed above, insteps 204 and 206 one or more existing or created programs may bedisplayed in a relationship view in the configuration diagram. Theprogram icons may be displayed proximate to (e.g., under) and/orconnected to the device icon on which they are stored or located(deployed). For example, programs that are stored on the main computersystem 82 are displayed proximate to the main computer system deviceicon. Alternatively, as mentioned above, the configuration diagram maysupport a program relationship view that displays only program icons,without device icons. Links may be displayed between the program iconsto indicate invocation (caller/callee) relationships.

Where the plurality of programs are configured to execute according to aspecified relationship, the plurality of program icons may be displayedon the display according to the specified relationship. The plurality ofprogram icons may thus be displayed to visually indicate the specifiedrelationship of the plurality of programs, e.g., according to theircorresponding relationship or program execution hierarchy. FIGS. 15-20and 21B show a configuration diagram with program icons arranged in aprogram execution hierarchy.

As shown in FIG. 8, in one embodiment in step 236 the user may select adevice icon (e.g., by double clicking or right clicking on the deviceicon). This may cause certain actions to occur, or a menu may open withdifferent selections. For example, in step 237 the program iconscorresponding to the programs comprised on or deployed on the device maybe shown. As noted above, the program icons corresponding to theprograms comprised on or deployed on the device may be shown proximateto the respective device icon, e.g., under the device icon, and/orconnected to the device icon, as shown in FIGS. 15-20 and 21.Alternatively, the user may select a feature to show the program iconscorresponding to all of the device icons. The configuration diagram mayinitially also display various program icons that are stored with eachof the various devices.

As another example, the user may select a device icon in step 236 toview various other elements contained in the respective device in step238, such as I/O channels, data points, named configurations, andprograms stored in or deployed on the device.

Therefore, in one embodiment, the configuration diagram may beautomatically or programmatically created by the computer system 82based on an automatic detection of devices coupled to the computersystem 82. In another embodiment, the computer system 82 mayautomatically or programmatically create a first portion of theconfiguration diagram for devices that it detects as being coupled to orcomprised in the computer system 82, and the user may optionally createa second portion of the configuration diagram for devices that could notbe detected by the computer system 82 through automatic means, and/orwhich include virtual devices that are not physically present.

The computer system 82 preferably stores the configuration diagram,e.g., data structures (which may be referred to as configuration data)corresponding to the configuration diagram. This configuration data maybe saved in memory and reloaded on the system 82 or on other devices.

Connecting Device Icons

In one embodiment, the user can use a wiring tool to connect two deviceicons, similarly to the wiring tool used in LabVIEW. This may cause aconnection, e.g., a wire, to appear between the device icons to indicatethat the devices are coupled to each other. As noted above, connectionsbetween two device icons may also be displayed automatically. In oneembodiment, the connection that is displayed between two device icons iscontext sensitive. In other words, the connection that is displayed orcreated on the display has a context or appearance that is associatedwith the types of devices that are being connected, the type of physicalinterface (e.g., bus type), and/or the type of data or information flowbetween the devices.

For example, where the link icon indicates the type of physicalinterface, when the user connects two device icons representing firstrepresenting first and second devices, the method may examine theinterface type supported by the first and second devices and generate aconnection or link between the two device icons having an appearancecorresponding to the interface type or bus type being used.Alternatively, the user may select a link or connection from a palettebased on the type of devices that the user desires to connect.

For example, where the link icon indicates the type of information flow,if the user is connecting a device icon representing a laser to a deviceicon representing a mirror or other optical device, when the userassociates the first device icon with the second device icon (e.g., byclicking on the first device icon and dragging the cursor to the seconddevice icon to create the connection), the configuration diagram mayautomatically draw a laser beam connection, i.e., a connection iconwhich has the appearance of a laser beam or optical signal. Thisvisually indicates to the user the type of data or signals that arebeing passed between the devices. Alternatively, in a measurement,automation or simulation application, when the user connects a tank iconrepresenting a tank to, for example, a valve icon representing a valve,the diagram may automatically draw the connection with the appearance ofa pipe to visually indicate to the user the type of signals, data orphenomena that is being transferred between the devices.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram is operable to perform typechecking of connections between device icons. For example, if the userattempts to connect a PCI device to a USB device, the method maydetermine that the devices are incompatible and generate an errorindication, such as a broken connection. As another example, if the userattempts to connect a tank icon to a laser icon, the configurationdiagram may perform type checking and determine that the two deviceicons are incompatible types that cannot share the same physicalphenomena.

However, if the user is connecting a first device icon to a seconddevice icon to deploy a program or indicate program invocation, thentype checking may not be performed, i.e., may be unnecessary.

Virtual Device Icons

As described above, the user may create a “virtual device icon” or“virtual program icon” that represents a non-present device or program,respectively. Virtual device icons and/or virtual program icons may alsobe automatically or programmatically created. For example, virtualdevice icons and/or virtual program icons may be automatically createdfor devices or programs that are purchased by user, wherein the virtualicons are displayed and used in the configuration diagram until theactual device or program is received and installed. For example, wherethe user purchases a device from a server computer 90, the server 90 mayprovide a virtual device icon to be temporarily displayed in the user'sconfiguration diagram until the actual device is received and installed.In one embodiment, simulation code may be created or used to simulateoperation of the virtual device until the physical device is installed.

In one embodiment, from the user's perspective, programs can be deployedto virtual devices (a program icon deployed to a virtual device icon)just as if the device was physically present. The program is notactually deployed or transferred to a virtual device until thecorresponding physical device is added to the distributed system. Whenthis occurs, the new device may be automatically detected, the newdevice may be correlated with the previously created virtual device, andprograms that have been previously “deployed” to the virtual device bythe user in the configuration diagram may now be physically or actuallydeployed to the real or physical device that has been installed. When aprogram is automatically deployed to a device icon, the configurationdiagram may be animated to visually indicate to the user the deploymentoperation that is occurring to the newly installed device. For example,when a program is automatically deployed from the main computer system82 to a first device, the corresponding program icon may be animated onthe configuration diagram to “flow” from the computer system device iconto the first device icon corresponding to the first device.

In a similar manner, a virtual program may be deployed to a device justas if the program was actually installed. For example, a virtual programicon that represents a hardware configuration program may be deployed toa device that includes a programmable hardware element. A virtualprogram icon may be used in the instance where the actual hardwareconfiguration program is in the process of being compiled and is not yetready for deployment. In one embodiment, the operation of the hardwareconfiguration program may be simulated by software executing on thecomputer system until the hardware configuration program has beencompiled and deployed.

In another embodiment, where a user specifies a non-present or “virtual”device, or attempts to deploy a program to a non-present or “virtual”device, the method may optionally use another “present” device as astand-in.

FIG. 9—Deploying a Program on a Device

FIG. 9 is a flowchart diagram illustrating operation of graphicallydeploying a program on a device. The method of FIG. 9 can be used todistribute an application among a plurality of devices in a distributedsystem, wherein the application comprises one or more programs. Themethod executes on a first computer system, such as computer system 82,which includes or is coupled to a display for displaying theconfiguration diagram. In one embodiment, the configuration diagram maybe shown on client computer 82 and the method may execute on servercomputer 90, which displays the configuration diagram on the clientcomputer 92.

It presumed that the configuration diagram (or another window) displaysone or more program icons, preferably a plurality of program icons,wherein each of the program icons corresponds to at least one program inthe application. The configuration diagram also displays one or moredevice icons on the display, wherein each device icon corresponds to adevice in the system. Each device may be coupled to the first computersystem 82 in some manner, or may be a virtual device as described above.

In step 242 the user associates a first program icon of the plurality ofprogram icons with a device icon in response to user input, wherein thefirst program icon corresponds to a first program in the application.The device icon represents a device in the system. For example, thedevice icon may correspond to a remote device in the distributed system,i.e., a device other than the main computer system 82. In the preferredembodiment, associating the first program icon with the device icon inresponse to user input comprises “dragging and dropping” the firstprogram icon on to the device icon. This may comprise the user selectinga program icon on the display in the configuration diagram with apointing device, such as a mouse, and dragging and dropping the programicon on to a device icon. The concept of “dragging and dropping” iconsis well known in the computer arts. The user may also associate thefirst program icon with the device icon using speech recognitiontechniques. For example, the user might say “associate program A withdevice B” or “deploy program A on device B” to cause the association.Other types of user input to create the association are alsocontemplated.

The step of associating (e.g., dragging and dropping) the first programicon with the device icon may include receiving further user input(e.g., a modifier) in step 244 indicating a certain operation. The typeof operation may include moving the program; copying the program;deploying the program for remote execution (steps 254 and 256); changingthe location of remote execution of a program from a first device to asecond device (FIG. 11) or creating a call or invocation to the program(FIG. 12) without moving the program. The step of associating may alsohave a default mode, e.g., that the first program is to be deployed onto the device for remote execution. Further user input may be providedby the user if a different operation than the default mode is desired.

This further user input may comprise the user pressing a key on thekeyboard during the drag and drop operation performed in step 242. Forexample, in one embodiment, when the user drags and drops the firstprogram icon on to the device icon without pressing a key on thekeyboard, the first program corresponding to the first program icon iscopied to the device, but is not deployed for remote execution. When theuser drags and drops the first program icon on to the device icon whilepressing a key on the keyboard (e.g., the ALT key), the first programcorresponding to the first program icon is copied to the device anddeployed for remote execution. In another embodiment, when the userassociates (e.g., drags and drops) the first program icon on to thedevice icon, a dialog box or menu appears which queries the user as tothe type of association the user desires. Speech recognition techniquesmay also be used.

In step 246 the method may convert the program type of the first programto a different program type supported by the device, if necessary. Inone embodiment, each program may have a program type, such asexecutable, text-based source code (un-compiled), graphical program,hardware configuration file, etc. In one embodiment, the method (e.g.,the computer system 82) may operate to automatically convert programsbetween different device types to ensure that deployed programs workproperly on the devices to which they are deployed. The conversionmethod may involve: determining the first program type of the firstprogram; determining the one or more program types supported by thedevice; determining if the device is incompatible with the first programtype of the first program; and converting the first program to adifferent program type supported by the device if the device isincompatible with the first program type of the first program. Step 246is discussed in greater detail with respect to the flowchart of FIG. 9.The conversion method may also display an error if conversion is notpossible.

In step 248 the method may load or deploy the first program on to thedevice in response to the association performed in step 242. Forexample, the method may transfer or load (e.g., move or copy) theprogram to the specified device for later (or immediate) execution. Thetype of load or deploy operation in step 248 may be performed based onthe input received in step 244. This transfer step may utilize any ofvarious standard bus protocols. Where the source and destination devicesare coupled to the Internet, the transfer may use TCP/IP. Where thesource device is the main computer system 82 and the destination deviceis a USB device coupled to the computer system 82, the transfer may useUSB communication (USB packets).

In one embodiment, the plurality of programs are configured to executeaccording to a specified relationship. For example, the plurality ofprograms may be configured to execute according to a specified executionhierarchy. In this embodiment, the first program may be configured tocall one or more other (e.g., lower level) programs according to thespecified relationship or hierarchy. In this instance, the deployingstep 248 comprises deploying the first program and the one or more other(e.g., lower level) programs on to the device. In other words, therespective program selected by the user in step 242 may be loaded instep 248, and all programs beneath the respective program in thehierarchy may be loaded as well.

In step 250 the method may display a new program icon proximate to thedevice icon after the associating step. The new program icon may bedisplayed in response to the deploying performed in step 248. The newprogram icon is preferably a copy of, or has the appearance of the firstprogram icon proximate to, or connected to, the device icon. The newprogram icon (e.g., the copy of the first program icon) displayedproximate to, or connected to, the device icon visually indicates thatthe first program is deployed on the device. In another embodiment, themethod may modify the device icon after or in response to the deployingstep 248 or the associating step 242. The modified device icon visuallyindicates that the first program is deployed on the device.

In one embodiment as noted above, the plurality of programs may beconfigured to execute according to a specified relationship (such as aspecified execution hierarchy), and the first program may be configuredto invoke one or more other (e.g., lower level) programs according tothe specified relationship or hierarchy. In this instance, step 250comprises displaying the first program icon corresponding to the firstprogram, as well as program icons corresponding to the one or more other(e.g., lower level) programs, proximate to the device icon.

This is illustrated in FIGS. 15-17. For example, FIG. 15 illustrates anexemplary configuration diagram including a hierarchy of program icons402 and 404A-D and a device icon 412. The hierarchy of program iconscomprises a main program icon 402 at the top level of the programhierarchy and four program icons (“sub-program icons) 404A-D at the nextlevel of the program hierarchy. When the user associates the programicon 402 with the device icon 412 (e.g., drags and drops the programicon 402 on to the device icon 412), as shown by the “dotted line” iconin FIG. 16, the resulting configuration diagram appears as shown in FIG.17. As shown in FIG. 17, the program icon 402, as well as the lowerlevel program icons 404A-D are copied proximate to (e.g., under) thedevice icon labeled “Shah” 412. This visually indicates that the entireprogram hierarchy has been deployed on or copied to the devicerepresented by the device icon 412. In another embodiment, the user canconfigure the deployment where only the selected program is transferred,and any lower level programs are not transferred.

In step 252 the method determines if the action being performed is aremote invocation. If the action being performed is simply a copy step,then operation completes, the copy having been performed in step 248.

If the action being performed is a remote invocation as determined instep 252, then in step 254 the method may modify the application toinvoke the first program on the remote device. This may comprisemodifying at least one program in the application to invoke the firstprogram on the device. Thus, during execution of the application, theapplication is operable to invoke the first program on the device,wherein the first program executes on the device. Where the plurality ofprograms are configured to execute according to a specifiedrelationship, and where the first program (e.g., callee program) isinvoked by a second program (e.g., caller program) according to thespecified relationship, step 254 may comprise modifying the secondprogram in the application to invoke the first program on the device. Ifthe action being performed involves associating a program icon from asource device to a destination device to configure remote invocation ofthe program on the destination device from the source device, then atleast one remaining program on the source device (which may be referredto as the caller program) may be modified to invoke the program on thedestination device.

In step 256 the method may comprise displaying a new icon (e.g., amodified version of an existing icon) on the display in theconfiguration diagram to represent the invocation being performed. Thisnew icon may visually indicate that the first program is deployed on thedevice and will be executing on the device. In other words, this newicon may visually indicate that the application invokes the firstprogram on the device. For example, the new icon may be displayed inplace of the first program icon. In one embodiment, the new icon is amodified version of the first program icon which visually indicate thatthe first program is deployed on the device and will be executing on thedevice. For example, the modified version of the first program icon maycomprise modifying the first program icon to include the appearance ofthe device icon.

For example, as noted above, FIG. 15 illustrates an exemplaryconfiguration diagram including a hierarchy of program icons 402 and 404a-d and a device icon 412. The hierarchy of program icons comprises amain program icon 402 at the top level of the program hierarchy and fourprogram icons (“sub-program icons) 404 a-d at the next level of theprogram hierarchy. When the user associates the program icon 404 d withthe device icon 412 (e.g., drags and drops the program icon 404 d on tothe device icon 412), as shown in FIG. 16, for the purpose of deployingthe program remotely, the resulting configuration diagram appears asshown in FIG. 18. As shown in FIG. 18, the program icon 404 d is copiedunder the device icon labeled “Shah” 412. Also the appearance of theoriginal program icon 404 d is changed to include the appearance of thedevice icon 412 resulting in new icon 404 d 1. This visually indicatesthat the program 404 d in the program hierarchy is deployed on thedevice represented by the device icon 412 and will be executing on thedevice.

After programs have been deployed to the various devices as desired, theapplication may be executed, as described with respect to FIG. 13 bDuring execution, a portion of the application may execute on the maincomputer system 82, or another device, and the application may invokevarious programs on various devices in the distributed system. Forexample, the application on the main computer system 82 execution mayinvoke a first program that has been deployed on a remote device. Thefirst program may execute on the device and then either invoke otherdevices or return control to the application on the main computer system82.

FIG. 10—Converting a Program to a Different Program Type

FIG. 10 is a flowchart diagram illustrating more detail regarding step246 of FIG. 9. FIG. 10 illustrates more detail regarding examining theprogram type of a program being deployed and ensuring that the programtype is compatible with the device to which it is being deployed. Asdescribed above, the method of FIG. 10 is performed when a user deploysa program on a device, e.g., when the user drags and drops a programicon on to a respective device icon. The method of FIG. 10 may also beperformed in response to other operations preferred by the user, such asan automatic deployment of a program.

As noted above, the program icon may represent any of various types ofprograms (“program types”) such as executable (compiled) programs,source code (uncompiled) programs of various types, graphical programs,hardware configuration programs (hardware descriptions), etc. The targetdevice represented by the device icon may be any of various devicetypes, e.g., may include a processor and memory or may include aprogrammable hardware element.

In one embodiment, the main computer system 82, which may be differentfrom the source device which currently stores the program and thedestination device to which the program is being deployed, may storeconversion software which examines both the type of the program beingdeployed and the type of device icon to which the software program isbeing deployed. The main computer system 82 may execute this conversionsoftware to automatically convert programs to different types on an asneeded basis, thereby ensuring that the destination device is able toreceive a program having a type that is executable or useable by thedestination device. In another embodiment, one or both of the sourcedevice and the destination (or target) device may include conversionsoftware for converting programs between various types.

In step 260 the method examines the type of software program beingdeployed, i.e., whether the software program is an executable program,uncompiled program, graphical program, software object, etc. The methodmay also determine more specific information regarding the program type.For example, if the software program is an uncompiled program, themethod may determine the type of source code, e.g., C, C++, Java, etc.,to determine the appropriate compiler, if necessary. If the softwareprogram is a graphical program, the method may determine whether thesoftware program is a LabVIEW VI, a Simulink diagram, a VEE diagram etc.The method may also determine different types of hardware configurationprograms or files (hardware descriptions).

In step 262 the method examines the type of device (“device type”) towhich the software program is being deployed, i.e., the type of devicerepresented by the device icon with which the program icon wasassociated. The various types of devices may include devices whichinclude a CPU with memory, a programmable hardware element, such as anFPGA, and/or may include respective types of execution engines orcompilers for different software types.

If the program icon has been associated (dragged and dropped) with ordeployed to another program, i.e., (the destination program icon) themethod may examine the destination program icon in step 262. This may benecessary to ensure that the destination program corresponding to thedestination program icon can interoperate with the program beingdeployed. The method may also examine the destination device whichincludes the destination program.

In step 264 the method determines whether the device is compatible withthe respective program. For example, if the device includes a CPU andmemory and an appropriate operating system and/or execution software,and the software program is a conventional executable which can beexecuted by the software currently present on the device, then thedevice is determined to be compatible with the program. However, asanother example, if the program is a software program such as a compiledexecutable or source code, and the device contains only a programmablehardware element such as an FPGA, then the software program would bedetermined to be incompatible with the device. As another example, ifthe program is a graphical program such as a LabVIEW graphical programdeveloped in the LabVIEW program development environment, and the deviceis a computer system which does not include the LabVIEW executionenvironment or LabVIEW run time system, then the software program wouldbe determined to be incompatible with the device.

If the device is determined to be compatible with the program in step264, then in step 248 the program is loaded into the memory of thedevice or configured on to the device for later execution. Thus, if theprogram is a software program and the device includes a processor andmemory medium, the software program can be loaded into the memory mediumof the device for later execution. As another example, if the program isa hardware configuration program or file for configuring a programmablehardware element such as an FPGA, and the device is, for example, asmart sensor which includes an FPGA, loading the program on to thedevice may comprise configuring the FPGA of the device with the hardwareconfiguration program. Step 248 was discussed above with respect to theflowchart of FIG. 8.

If the device is determined to be incompatible with the program in step264, then in step 266 the program may be converted into the appropriateformat for the device, if possible. As one example, if the program is asoftware program such as an executable (compiled) program, a graphicalprogram, a source code program, etc., and the device includes aprogrammable hardware element such as an FPGA, the software program maybe programmatically converted into a hardware configuration program instep 266. As another example, if a program is a particular type ofprogram which requires a particular execution engine, such as a LabVIEWgraphical program or VI which requires a LabVIEW execution engine, andthe destination device does not include the LabVIEW execution engine,then the LabVIEW graphical program may be converted into a text basedprogramming language, e.g., a C program, and then compiled intoexecutable format in step 266. As yet another example, if the program isa hardware configuration program intended for an FPGA or otherprogrammable hardware element, and the device to which the program isbeing deployed comprises a CPU and memory and does not include aprogrammable hardware element, then the hardware configuration programmay be converted into a software program for execution by the device instep 266. As another example, if the program is currently in a sourcecode format, an appropriate compiler may be selected based on the typeof target device, or the type of software present on the target device.

In step 248 the converted program is loaded on to the device. Forexample, where the main computer system 82 is the source device, themain computer 82 may execute the conversion program to convert theprogram to the appropriate program type, and transfer the convertedprogram to the destination device. If the main computer system 82 is notthe source device, the program may first be transferred to the maincomputer system 82 for conversion, followed by transferring theconverted program to the destination device.

It is noted that the operation of converting the program into theappropriate format for the device in step 232 and then loading theconverted program on to the device in step 234 may occur invisibly tothe user. In other words, the user may simply drag and drop the programicon on to the device icon in step 242 and enter other information instep 244. Steps 246, 248, 250, 252, 254 and 256 of FIG. 8 (and the stepsof FIG. 9) may be performed invisibly to the user. Thus, the user maynever know that the program corresponding to the program icon that theuser dragged and dropped on to the device icon was initiallyincompatible with the device, the conversion of the program to theappropriate format in step 246 having been performed invisibly to theuser.

In another embodiment, if the device is determined to be incompatiblewith the program in step 264, a dialog may appear alerting the user asto this incompatibility and asking if the user desires for theconversion to occur. In some instances there may be a plurality ofappropriate formats or program types for the device. In this instance,the dialog box may request the user to select which format or programtype in to which to convert the program in step 266. Alternatively, theuser may choose to not complete the deployment due to theincompatibility.

In another embodiment, instead of converting the program to theappropriate type, the method may transfer software, such as an executionengine, to the device to enable the device to execute the program. Forexample, if the program is a graphical program such as a LabVIEWgraphical program developed in LabVIEW, and the device does not includethe LabVIEW execution environment or LabVIEW runtime system, then thecomputer system 82 may transfer the LabVIEW execution engine, e.g.,LabVIEW or LabVIEW RT, to the device.

FIG. 11—Association of a Program Icon from a Source Device to aDestination Device

FIG. 11 is a generalized flowchart diagram illustrating association of aprogram icon from a first or source device to a second or destinationdevice. Stated another way, FIG. 11 illustrates where a program iconcorresponding to a first or source device icon may be associated with asecond or destination device icon, or a program icon of the destinationdevice icon. The flowchart of FIG. 10 describes operation where thesource device icon may be the main computer system 82 or a remote devicecoupled to the main computer system 82. In a similar manner, thedestination device or second device may be the main computer system 82or a remote device coupled to the main computer system.

The flowchart of FIG. 11 is similar to the flowchart of FIG. 9. However,the flowchart of FIG. 11 further includes case 4 described above, whichinvolves transferring remote execution of a program from a first deviceto a second device, wherein in each case the program is being remotelyinvoked by a third device.

As shown, in step 242 the user may associate a program icon from a firstsource device to a second destination device. As described above withrespect to step 242, this may be performed using iconic drag and droptechniques.

In step 244 the user may specify the type of operation. As describedabove, this may comprise pressing a selected key on the keyboard duringthe drag and drop operation, using a dialog box before or after the dragand drop operation, or using speech recognition techniques.

In step 246 the method may convert the program type of the source orfirst program to a different program type supported by the destinationdevice. As described above with respect to 246 of FIG. 9, where thesource and destination devices are both remote devices, this may involvethe main computer system 82 detecting that a conversion is needed,reading the respective program from the source device, performing theconversion to the new program type, and then sending the convertedprogram to the destination device in step 248. In another embodiment,various devices in the distributed system may include the capability ofperforming this program type conversion as desired.

In step 248 the program may be deployed on the destination device. Thismay be performed by the source device directly sending the program orthe converted program to the destination device. Alternatively, theprogram may be routed through the main computer system 82, e.g., may betransferred from the source device to the main computer system 82 andthen to the destination device.

In step 250 a new program icon may be displayed proximate to thedestination device icon in the configuration diagram to indicate thatthis program has been transferred or copied to the destination device.

Upon completion of step 250, various different operations may beperformed depending on the type of operation selected by the user. Asshown, if the user has indicated a desire to simply copy the programfrom the source device to the destination device then operationcompletes, the copy operation having been performed in step 248.

If the user has indicated in step 244 that a remote invocation from thefirst remote device to the second remote device is desired, then in step254 the method modifies the caller program on the source device toinvoke the callee program (the program that was transferred in step 248)on the destination device. In step 256 the caller program icon ismodified on the source device or first device to initially indicate thatthe program is being invoked on the second or destination device. Thisoperation is similar or identical to operation in steps 254 and 256 ofFIG. 9.

The user may also indicate in step 244 that the user desires remoteinvocation of this program from a third device (e.g., the main computersystem 82) to this program on the second or destination device. In otherwords, the user may have previously deployed this program on the sourcedevice, and may later decide to instead have the remote execution ofthis program occur on a different device, i.e., the destination deviceinstead of the source device. Thus, instead of the user having to movethe program icon corresponding to this program back to the main computersystem device icon and then to the new destination device where remoteexecution is desired, the user can simply drag and drop the program iconfor this program from the first or source remote device to the second ordestination remote device and indicate that the user desires thisprogram to be called from the main computer system 82 and execute onthis second destination device. In this instance, in step 253 thecomputer system 82 may determine if it is able to invoke the programfrom the destination device. If so, then in step 254A the computersystem 82 modifies the application, e.g., one of the programs on theapplication contained on the computer system 82, to invoke the programon the second destination device. In step 256A the original programicon, i.e., the caller program icon proximate to the computer systemdevice icon is modified to visually indicate that the program is nowbeing invoked on the second or destination remote device and is nolonger being invoked on the first or source remote device.

As noted above, the user may also associate (e.g., drag and drop) aprogram icon from a first device icon to a second device icon andindicate that the user desires for a program or application on thesecond device icon to invoke the program corresponding to the programicon being associated on the first icon. In this situation, as shown inFIG. 12, in step 292 a program or application on the second device,e.g., one or more programs in the second device, may be modified toinvoke the program that is stored on the first device. In step 294 themethod may modify the original program icon on the second device tovisually indicate that the program is being invoked on the first device.FIG. 12 is described further below.

FIG. 12—Association of a Program Icon from a Remote Device to the MainComputer System

FIG. 12 is a flowchart diagram illustrating association of a programicon from a remote device to the device icon for the main computersystem 82. It is noted that the flowchart of FIG. 12 can also applyreadily to associating a program icon from a first remote device to thedevice icon of a second remote device.

In one embodiment, the user can select program icons comprised on adevice that is not the main device 82 and associate these program iconswith the main device 82 using the drag and drop techniques describedabove. The user can select various operations to be performed, asdescribed below. For example, in step 282 the user can select a programresiding on a remote device and drag and drop the corresponding programicon on to the device icon of the main device 82.

In step 284 the user can select among various options, e.g., eitherto 1) move or 2) copy the program to the main computer system 82, 3) todeploy the program in the main computer system; 4) to transfer executionfrom a first device to a second device; or 5) to cause remote executionof this program by the programs on the main computer system 82. Thisselection may be performed by providing certain user input, such asholding down a certain key during the drag and drop operation, orthrough a dialog box, or using speech recognition. Here it is presumedthat the user selects option 5. Options 1, 2 and 3 were described abovein FIG. 9 and options 1, 2, 3 and 4 were described above in FIG. 11.

If the user selects the option to cause remote execution of this programby the application on the main computer system 82 as determined in step286, then steps 292 and 294 are performed. In step 292 the application,e.g., one or more programs in the application, may be modified to invokethe program that is stored on the remote device. In step 294 the methodmay modify the original program icon in the application to visuallyindicate that the program is being invoked on the remote device.

Thus, in this instance, the program on the remote device is not actuallycopied to the main device, rather dragging and dropping the program onthe remote device to the main device icon causes the main device icon toinclude a call to this program on the remote device. Thus, when the mainprogram on the main device executes, a call is made to this program onthe remote device to invoke execution of this program on the remotedevice during execution of the main application program.

In step 282 the user can drag the program from the remote device to aparticular program icon in the hierarchy of program icons displayed onthe main device. Thus the user can select which program in the hierarchyof the main device 82 will call this program on the remote device. Ifthe user drags a first program icon from the remote device on to asecond program icon residing on the main device 82 in this fashion, thenin the embodiment of FIG. 12, the second program is configured to placea call to the first program. Thus, after the second program(corresponding to the second program icon) in the main device 82executes, it places a call to the first program (corresponding to thefirst program icon) on the remote device to invoke execution of thisfirst program on the remote device. If the user desires to specify withfiner granularity where in a respective second program on the maindevice this call should be made, the user may open up the source code ofthe second program and specify the exact location. For example, if theprogram is a graphical program, such as a LabVIEW VI, the user may openthe block diagram of the second program (e.g., by right clicking on theprogram icon in the configuration diagram and selecting this option) andthen further select a particular node where this call is to be made. Inone embodiment, the user may drag and drop the program icon from theremote device on to a particular location (e.g., on to a node or wire)in the diagram to select where this call is to be made. In oneembodiment, when the user drags a program from a remote device to aprogram icon on the main device, and where the program on the maindevice is a graphical program, the graphical program block diagramautomatically appears on the display, allowing the user to easilynavigate and place the call to the program in the calling program.

FIG. 13A—Possible Operations with Program Icons

As described above, the system displays the configuration diagram withan iconic view, preferably an iconic relationship view (e.g., hierarchyview), of the distributed software programs. The user can select variousoptions associated with device icons and/or program icons. FIG. 20Aillustrates an exemplary screen shot showing a user selecting options(e.g., by right clicking on the icon) from a menu associated with aprogram icon. The follow are representative examples of operations thatmay be performed with respect to a program icon.

In step 360 the configuration diagram is displayed with an iconicrelationship view of the distributed programs.

In step 362 the user can select a program icon associated with a deviceicon, e.g., by right clicking on the respective program icon.Alternatively, the user may select a device icon, e.g., by rightclicking on the device icon and then selecting a run option for thedevice icon.

In step 364 the user can then select a “run” option to begin executionof the program that has been deployed on to the device. If the user hasselected a device icon, the user can select a run option for the deviceicon. This operates to begin execution of the top level program, or allof the programs, that have currently been deployed on the device. ThisRun option is shown in FIG. 18.

In step 368 the user may select an “Open Front Panel” option to view thefront panel or user interface of the program deployed on or executing onthe device. If the program is not currently executing, selection of thisoption will cause the user interface panel(s) or front panel to bedisplayed for the program. If the program is currently executing on thedevice, and the user selects this option to view the user interfacepanel, the user interface panel may appear wherein the user interfacepanel may show one or more of the inputs and/or outputs of the programbeing executed. Where the program is executing on a remote device, i.e.,a device separate from the computer system, the panel or user interfaceinformation may be transferred to the main computer system 82 fordisplay. The data being received by or generated by the program may betransferred over a bus or network to the main computer system 82 wherethe user interface panel is displayed, and the data may appear in theuser interface panel much like the programs executing directly on themain machine. In one embodiment, the user may also be able tointeractively manipulate input provided to the program using the userinterface panel on the main program, wherein this user input is receivedby the main computer system and transferred to the device where theprogram is actually executing. Output produced by the program inresponse to this input may then be transferred back to the main computersystem 82 and displayed on the user interface panel that is beingdisplayed on the display of the main computer system 82. The “Open FrontPanel” option is shown in FIG. 20A.

As shown in step 372, the user may also select an option to cause theprogram represented by the program icon to halt execution. This may alsocause all programs below this program in the hierarchy to also haltexecution. Alternatively, the user may select an option for a deviceicon to select a stop or halt menu item, which causes all programsexecuting on the respective device to stop execution.

In one embodiment, the may also select an option to cause the sourcecode of the program to be displayed. For example, if the program is agraphical program, then user selection of this option may cause theblock diagram of the graphical program to be displayed. If the programis a text based program, such as a C-language program, then userselection of this option may cause the textual source code of theprogram to be displayed. The user may also select various debuggingfeatures to executing on the program.

Various other operations are possible. For example, FIG. 20A illustratesa menu which includes options such as “Highlight Connections”, “Hide AllSub-VIs”, “Show VI Hierachy”, “Show All Sub-VIs”, “Show All Callers”,“Find All Instances”, “Edit Icon”, VI Properties”, “Open Front Panel”(see step 368), “Print Documentation”, “Run” (see step 362), “CloseVI”,and “Remote Call”.

Selection of the “Remote Call” feature is shown in FIG. 20B. As shown,selection of the “Remote Call” feature may cause the names of otherprogram icons or device icons to be displayed in a menu. The user maythen select the name of an icon to configure a remote call orinvocation. A new link may then be displayed in the configurationdiagram to visually indicate this remote call. Alternatively, when theuser selects the “Remote Call” feature, program icons or device iconsthemselves may be highlighted in the diagram. The user may then selectfrom among these icons to configure the remote call.

In one embodiment, if the user drags and drops a first device icon on toa second device icon, this causes all programs stored on the firstdevice icon to be copied to or deployed to the second device icon.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may support an applicationicon or project icon, wherein the application icon or project iconrepresents one or more programs and possibly other information. Forexample, the application icon or project icon may also include orrepresent information that specifies how the various programs, helpfiles, etc. are to be distributed among the various devices in a system.The configuration diagram may also support a system icon, wherein thesystem icon represents a distributed system comprising a plurality ofdevices (wherein each device may have its own device icon).

The user may associate (e.g., drag and drop) the configuration icon orproject icon on to a system icon, wherein this causes the variousprograms to be distributed or deployed among the devices in the systemrepresented by the system icon. Information represented by theapplication icon may be used in deploying the programs to the variousdevices.

FIG. 13B

FIG. 13B illustrates execution of an application. As shown, the user canselect the top level program icon in the relationship or hierarchy andbegin execution of the top level program, e.g., by right clicking on thetop level program icon and selecting a “run” feature. Alternatively, theuser can select the device icon and select a “run” feature, which causesthe top level program to begin execution.

During execution, a portion of the application may execute on the maincomputer system 82 in step 382, and the application may invoke variousprograms on various devices in the distributed system in step 384. Forexample, the application on the main computer system 82 execution mayinvoke a first program that has been deployed on a remote device. Thefirst program may execute on the device and then either invoke otherdevices or return control to the application on the main computer system82. In another embodiment, the main computer system 82 may be used forconfiguration only, and the application may execute on various otherdevices.

Where two or more of the programs are configured for concurrent orparallel execution, such as on different devices, selecting the “run”option for the top level program icon and/or the device icon may causethese two or more programs to begin concurrent or parallel execution.

Installing New Programs

When a user installs a new program on the main computer system 82 or onanother device in the distributed system, the new program may beautomatically detected, e.g., by the main computer system 82, and a newprogram icon may be automatically displayed on the configuration diagramdisplayed on the main computer system 82 corresponding to the newprogram. The new program icon may be automatically displayed on theconfiguration diagram proximate to, and/or connected to, the device onwhich the program has been installed. For example, if the new program isinstalled on the first computer system, a new program icon may appearproximate to, and/or connected to, the first computer system device iconon the configuration diagram.

Example Configuration Dialog for Assembling a Configuration Diagram

FIG. 14 illustrates one embodiment of a configuration dialog forcreating or specifying a configuration diagram. FIG. 14 illustrates aconfiguration dialog or user interface panel which is used for detectingor discovering devices connected within the system. As noted above, thecomputer system 82 may act as the central console of the distributedsystem, and may operate to execute software which displays theconfiguration diagram, as well as the configuration dialog used inconfiguring the configuration diagram.

The computer system 82 preferably has the ability to discover devices,e.g., other computers, smart sensors, FPGA devices, or other types ofnodes or devices that are comprised and are coupled to the computer,e.g., coupled to the computer through a network. The system preferablydiscovers or detects devices and adds them to the configuration diagram.In one embodiment, one or more of the various devices may have thecapability to report their presence and device type to the main computersystem 82. For example, various smart sensors may publish their presenceand device type to the main computer system 82.

In one embodiment, the system also has the ability to create virtualdevices in cases where the actual device is not presently available, butthe device will be present when the system executes the applicationbeing created. Thus, the user can create a virtual device for devicesthat are not actually present during design time. In one embodiment, aphysical device may be used as a “stand in” device for a virtual device,wherein the program desired to be deployed to the virtual device insteadis deployed to or executes on the “stand in” device until a physicaldevice is installed in the system that corresponds to the virtualdevice. In another embodiment, a software program may be used tosimulate operation of a virtual device, i.e., a physical device that isnot present.

In one embodiment, as devices or nodes of interest are added to the userinterface panel in FIG. 14, they appear as devices icons or computingelement icons in the configuration diagram. Thus, when the main computersystem 82 is started, devices which are automatically detected mayimmediately and automatically appear as device icons in theconfiguration diagram. As the user later inputs the presence of otherdevices to the configuration dialog, corresponding device icons may alsoautomatically appear in the configuration diagram. When the user orother party couples a new device to the distributed system, the newdevice may be automatically detected, and a new device iconcorresponding to the new device may be automatically displayed on theconfiguration diagram.

In another embodiment, more advanced wizards may be used to create theconfiguration diagram. In one embodiment, a configuration wizard mayexecute on a server 90, or on the user's system 82, where the server 90also stores a plurality of different programs. The configuration wizardmay ask the user a series of questions regarding desired operation ofthe system, the hardware devices the user's system contains, etc. Theconfiguration wizard may then automatically create a configurationdiagram for the user and display this configuration diagram on theuser's display. The configuration wizard may also transfer thecorresponding configuration data to the user's computer 82. Thisconfiguration data may be executable to automatically deploy programs onvarious of the user's hardware devices. Alternatively, the server 90 mayautomatically deploy programs on various of the user's hardware devicesover a network.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may support a find ordiscovery tool. The find tool may support various filters that the usercan configure with logical expressions in order to locate variousdevices, programs, I/O channels, data points, etc. For example, the usercan enter the following “find” expressions:

-   -   Find Only FP2000 or Devices with AI    -   Find device that has a tag named . . .    -   IP starts with 130.164.*    -   Add all RT devices on my subnet. Etc    -   Find devices on building No 2    -   Do not show nodes on Building 1        FIG. 15—Deploying Programs and Changing Invocation Relationships

FIGS. 15-19 illustrate embodiments of how programs may be deployed usinga configuration diagram. FIG. 32 illustrates an example of deployment ofa program to a target device.

FIG. 15 illustrates a configuration diagram (labeled “hierarchy window”)which includes a main program icon 412 and four sub-program icons404A-404D. In this example, the user has added a computer system on thenetwork into the configuration panel of FIG. 14 wherein the name of thiscomputer system is “Shah”. Thus, the configuration diagram appears asshown in FIG. 15 with a device icon 412 representing the computer systemlabeled “Shah”.

As shown in FIG. 16, when the user desires to distribute an applicationamong various devices, e.g., to deploy a program on to a device, theuser can select a program icon with a pointing device, and drag and dropthe icon on to a device icon. As shown in FIG. 16, the user has selectedthe main program icon 402 and has dragged and dropped this icon 402 onto the device icon 412. This is represented by the box outlined withdashed lines shown in FIG. 16.

When this operation is completed the main software program correspondingto the program icon 402 and all of the sub-programs within the hierarchyare copied to the destination device. Also, the program icon 402 and allof the sub-program icons 404A-D are copied to appear proximate to (e.g.,under) the device icon 412. The configuration diagram then appears asshown in FIG. 17. Thus, the same application hierarchy of program icons402 and 404A, 404B, 404C and 404D appear below the device icon 412,indicating that these programs are now deployed on the devicerepresented by device icon 412.

As described above, in one embodiment when the user drags a program iconfrom the hierarchy of program icons on to a device icon, this mayoperate to copy the underlying program corresponding to the program iconon to the respective device. Thus, for example, the configuration windowmay display a hierarchy of program icons that are resident on the maincomputer system. If the user selects the top level program from thishierarchy and drags this top level program on to a device iconcorresponding to a different device in the system, this causes thevarious programs corresponding to the main program and all programsbelow this main program in the hierarchy to be copied to the respectivedevice. If the user selects a sub-program in the hierarchy resident onthe main computer system and copies this over to a device, this causesthe sub-program and all sub-programs below this sub-program in thehierarchy to be copied over to the device. Thus, when the user drags aprogram icon to a respective device, this causes the programcorresponding to that program icon and all programs below that programicon in the hierarchy to be copied to the respective device.

In one embodiment, the user may desire to distribute parts of anapplication to different devices in the distributed system fordistributed execution, which also effectively changes the operation ofthe programs contained on the original or source device (e.g., the maincomputer system) that are being executed. For example, assume the userdesires to deploy a sub-program of a main program on to a differentdevice for execution. In one embodiment, the user simply drags theprogram icon corresponding to the sub-program from the main programhierarchy on to the device icon and may further indicate a “deploymentfor remote execution” (such as by holding down the ALT key during thedrag and drop operation). This causes the sub-program to be transferredto the device. This also causes the main program to be automaticallymodified to include a call of the sub-program to the target device towhich the program was deployed. Thus, the high level program in thehierarchy is automatically modified to include a call to the device tocall or invoke execution of this program on the remote or target device.The corresponding configuration window would appear as shown in FIG. 18,wherein the top level program in the program hierarchy has threesub-program icons 404A-404C which are resident on the main machine 82,and an icon 404D1 corresponding to the remote device in the hierarchyindicates that a call is being made to a remote device during execution.

One example of this operation is as follows. Presume an application ismeasuring the temperature of a tank and is performing calculations andcontrol as well as logging data values to a non-volatile memory or disk.If the temperature sensor used in the application is connected to adifferent computer system or a different device (device B), then theuser may desire to run the program that measures the temperature on thatseparate or remote device (device B). The user can accomplish thisresult without requiring manual modification of the application. Theuser can simply drag the temperature program to the different device ormachine (device B). In one embodiment, the user presses the ALT keywhile dragging and dropping the sub-program icon on to the remotedevice. This causes the temperature program to be downloaded to deviceB. The top level application, i.e., the program immediately above thisprogram in the program hierarchy, is preferably automatically modifiedto make a call to this temperature program, which is now located ondevice B. Also, the configuration diagram would appear as shown in FIG.18. Here, the top level application is calling the temperature programon the machine referred to as “SHAH”. It is noted that the user caneasily change where this remote call is made simply by dragging theprogram to another device or by using a pop-up menu.

In one embodiment, the user may also change the invocation relationshipbetween two (or more) programs by selecting a link or link icon betweentwo programs and manipulating or changing one or both ends of the linkto connect one or more different programs. The user can also draw linksbetween program icons to configure an invocation relationship betweenthe respective programs.

For example, FIG. 17 illustrates a program relationship view of variousprograms. The program relationship view shows the invocationrelationship or caller/callee relationship between the programs. If theuser no longer desires the program represented by program icon program402 a to invoke or call the program represented by program icon 404 d 2,the user can select the link icon 405 and graphically reconfigure thelink icon to be drawn between program icon 404 a and program icon 404 d2. For example, the user may select the end of the link proximate to theprogram icon 402 a and drag this end of the link with a pointing deviceover to the other program icon 404 a, creating a new link 405 a. Afterthis operation, the configuration diagram would appear as shown in FIG.19A. As shown, program icon 404 a is now connected by link icon 405 a toprogram icon 404 d 2, and link icon 405 between program icons 402 a and404 d 2 is no longer displayed. This indicates that the programrepresented by program icon 404 a is configured to call the programrepresented by program icon 404 d 2, instead of the program representedby program icon 402 a being configured to call the program representedby program icon 404 d 2.

If the user had desired both programs represented by program icons 402 aand 404 a to call program 404 d 2, the user could simply draw a new linkbetween program icon 404 a and program icon 404 d 2. The resultingdiagram would then appear as shown in FIG. 19B. As shown in FIG. 19B,links are displayed between program icons 402 a and 404 d 2 as well asbetween program icons 404 a and 404 d 2.

Use of the Configuration Diagram with Graphical Programs

Where a program icon on the configuration diagram corresponds to agraphical program, the user may perform various additional operations.Since the graphical program is itself an iconic program, the user isable to graphically specify particular locations in the graphicalprogram or invocation to occur. For example, if the user desires tochoose a specific location in the graphical program to have a call madeto a remote device, this may be performed graphically within thegraphical program. In other words, if the user desires to choose aparticular function node in the graphical program to make a call orinvoke a program on a remote device (e.g., different computer), or ifthe user desires to have one or more nodes or sub-programs in thegraphical program execute on a remote device, this may be easilyperformed using the block diagram of the graphical program. The user mayfurther incorporate device icons or program icons directly into agraphical program using the graphical association techniques describedherein.

Creation of a Graphical Program

A graphical program may be created on the computer system 82 (or on adifferent computer system). The graphical program may be created orassembled by the user arranging on a display a plurality of nodes oricons and then interconnecting the nodes to create the graphicalprogram. In response to the user assembling the graphical program, datastructures may be created and stored which represent the graphicalprogram. The nodes may be interconnected in one or more of a data flow,control flow, or execution flow format. The graphical program may thuscomprise a plurality of interconnected nodes or icons which visuallyindicate the functionality of the program. As noted above, the graphicalprogram may comprise a block diagram and may also include a userinterface portion or front panel portion. Where the graphical programincludes a user interface portion, the user may assemble the userinterface on the display. As one example, the user may use the LabVIEWgraphical programming development environment to create the graphicalprogram.

In an alternate embodiment, the graphical program may be created by theuser creating or specifying a prototype, followed by automatic orprogrammatic creation of the graphical program from the prototype. Thisfunctionality is described in U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/595,003 titled “System and Method for Automatically Generating aGraphical Program to Implement a Prototype” and U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 09/587,682 titled “System and Method for AutomaticallyGenerating a Graphical Program to Perform an Image ProcessingAlgorithm”, which are both hereby incorporated by reference in theirentirety as though fully and completely set forth herein. The graphicalprogram may be created in other manners, either by the user orprogrammatically, as desired. The graphical program may implement ameasurement function that is desired to be performed by an instrument ormeasurement device. The graphical program may also implement anautomation function (including process control), a simulation function,a network management function, or any other type of function, asdesired.

FIG. 22—Creating the Graphical Program

FIG. 22 is a flowchart diagram illustrating one embodiment of a methodfor creating a graphical program operable to receive and respond to userinterface events. It is noted that steps in the following flowcharts mayoccur concurrently or in different orders than that shown.

In step 602, a graphical user interface or front panel for the graphicalprogram may be created, e.g., in response to user input. The graphicaluser interface may be created in any of various ways, e.g., depending onthe graphical programming development environment used.

In step 604, a block diagram for the graphical program may be created.The block diagram may be created in or using any graphical programmingdevelopment environment, such as LabVIEW, Simulink, VEE, or anothergraphical programming development environment. The block diagram may becreated in response to direct user input, e.g., the user may create theblock diagram by placing or “dragging and dropping” icons or nodes onthe display and interconnecting the nodes in a desired fashion.Alternatively, the block diagram may be programmatically created from aprogram specification. The plurality of nodes in the block diagram maybe interconnected to visually indicate functionality of the graphicalprogram. The block diagram may have one or more of data flow, controlflow, and/or execution flow representations. The block diagram may haveone or more nodes which represent sub-graphical programs (e.g.,sub-VIs), and thus may be hierarchical. An exemplary block diagram isshown in FIGS. 24 and 24B.

It is noted that the graphical user interface and the block diagram maybe created separately or together, in various orders, or in aninterleaved manner. In one embodiment, the user interface elements inthe graphical user interface or front panel may be specified or created,and terminals corresponding to the user interface elements may appear inthe block diagram in response. For example, when the user places userinterface elements in the graphical user interface or front panel,corresponding terminals may appear in the block diagram as nodes thatmay be connected to other nodes in the block diagram, e.g., to provideinput to and/or display output from other nodes in the block diagram. Inanother embodiment, the user interface elements may be created inresponse to the block diagram. For example, the user may create theblock diagram, wherein the block diagram includes terminal icons ornodes that indicate respective user interface elements. The graphicaluser interface or front panel may then be automatically (or manually)created based on the terminal icons or nodes in the block diagram. Asanother example, the graphical user interface elements may be comprisedin the diagram.

In step 606, the graphical program may be stored on or deployed to adevice, and in step 608 a corresponding graphical program icon mayappear in the configuration diagram

The graphical program may then be deployed to various other device usingthe graphical deployment techniques described herein, or may be executedas described herein. The graphical program may be executed on any of thevarious devices present in the distributed system.

FIG. 23—Configuring a Graphical Program Node for Remote Execution

FIG. 23 is a flowchart diagram illustrating one embodiment of operationof configuring a graphical program node for remote execution. The methodof FIG. 23 may be used for deploying nodes of a graphical program tovarious different devices for remote execution.

As shown, where the program is a graphical program, such as a LabVIEWVI, the user can display the main block diagram of the graphical program(LabVIEW VI) in step 502.

In step 504 the user can select a node in the graphical program, e.g., asub-program or sub-VI node, a primitive node, or other type of node. Theuser may also be able to select a group of nodes by drawing a “box”around the desired nodes. The user may select a node by using a pointingdevice or by other means.

In step 506 the user may then select among the various devices in theconfiguration diagram, e.g., other computer systems or devices on whichthe user desires to have this node or sub-VI execute. For example, wherethe graphical program is stored on a first device, the user may select asecond device icon corresponding to a second device and graphicallyassociate the node with the second device icon. The term “remote device”in this context simply means a different device than the one whichcurrently stores the graphical program. This selection may be performedin the same manner as an association, e.g., by using drag and droptechniques, menus, dialog boxes, or speech recognition, among othermethods.

For example, FIG. 24A illustrates a block diagram of a LabVIEW graphicalprogram or VI wherein the user has selected a menu of a node, e.g., byright clicking on the node, and has selected a remote call feature fromthe menu. When the user selects the remote call feature, a list ofdevices may appear for the user to select. User selection of a devicefrom this menu may cause deployment of the respective node (e.g.,deployment of the functionality represented by the node icon) to theselected device. Alternatively, the user may drag and drop a graphicalprogram node from the block diagram on to a device icon representinganother device to deploy the graphical program node onto the device forremote execution. For example, the user can select one or more nodes inthe graphical program and “drag and drop” them onto a device icon todeploy these nodes onto the respective remote device.

In step 508 the functionality of the node (or nodes) may be deployed tothe selected remote device, i.e., the device selected in step 506. Instep 508 the functionality (e.g., program instructions and/or datastructures) of the node (or nodes) may be automatically transferred tothe selected remote device based on the user input in step 506. In otherwords, each node in a graphical program may have associated programinstructions and/or data structures, and these may be automaticallytransferred to the selected remote device. As noted above, the userinput may comprise selecting a remote device in step 506 from a menu, ormay comprise graphically associating or dragging and dropping the nodeonto a device icon of a device in the configuration diagram.

This deployment operation in step 508 may also involve determining ifthe device is capable of natively executing graphical programming code.If the device is not capable of executing graphical programming code,the graphical program code corresponding to this node may be convertedto a DLL, hardware configuration program, or other software format.

In step 510 a new icon may be displayed in the block diagram to visuallyindicate to the user that this node is being remotely executed. The newicon may be a modified node icon which includes at least a portion ofthe appearance of the original node, as well as an additional imageportion to indicate the remote execution. For example, FIG. 24Billustrates one example of the block diagram of FIG. 24A after the userhas selected this feature to remotely call this graphical program nodeor VI on a different device. As shown, the icon in the block diagramchanges its appearance to visually indicate to the user that this nodeor sub-program is deployed on a remote device and will execute on theremote device. In another embodiment, the icon in the block diagram doesnot change its appearance to visually indicate remote execution. In thisembodiment, the user may optionally select a certain view of the blockdiagram to highlight respective nodes that are configured for remoteexecution.

In step 512 the graphical program may be modified to be able to invokethe node on the remote device. In other words, the graphical program mayinclude program instructions and/or data structures, and these may bemodified, e.g., new program instructions and/or data structures may beadded, to invoke the node on the remote device during graphical programexecution. Alternatively, the graphical program execution engine (thesoftware that executes the graphical program) may be modified toimplement this remote invocation. Graphical code in the graphicalprogram may also be modified (or added) in the graphical program toinvoke the node on the remote device. For example, one or more nodes maybe added or modified in the graphical program (e.g., as described instep 510) to visually indicate that the invocation is occurring, andthat the respective node is being invoked on the remote device. Addednodes may include associated program instructions and/or data structuresthat are executable to invoke the node on the remote device.

Thus this remote call feature can be used to cause a selected node orprogram, e.g., the selected sub-VI, to execute on a different device orcomputer system, wherein the main graphical program or main VI callsthis sub-VI to execute on the remote device.

The deployment of a sub-program of a graphical program block diagram ona remote device is particularly useful where there are multipleinstances of the same sub-program in the main graphical program, and theuser desires to select a particular sub-program for deployment.

Therefore, the user can configure a graphical program node for remoteexecution. Where the program is a graphical program, such as a LabVIEWVI, the user can display the main block diagram of the graphicalprogram. The user can select nodes in the graphical program andassociate, e.g., drag and drop, these graphical program nodes to deviceicons in the configuration diagram. As a result, the functionality ofthe nodes may be deployed to the selected remote devices. This providesa very simple mechanism for a user to distribute execution of agraphical program among a plurality of different devices in a system.

In one embodiment, the user may graphically configure or deploy portionsof any of various types of programs, including programs written intext-based and graphical programming languages. The method may involvedisplaying source code of a program on the display of the computersystem. The program may be written in a text-based programming language,or may be a graphical program. The computer system display may alsoinclude a configuration diagram that displays a first device icon thatcorresponds to a first device and a second device icon that correspondsto a second device. The program may be stored on the first device. Theuser may then select a portion of the source code of the program andgraphically associate the portion of the source code with the seconddevice icon.

Where the program is written in a text-based programming language, theuser may highlight the desired source code portion (e.g., highlight theC code portion, such as a subroutine) and associate, e.g., drag anddrop, this code portion onto the second device icon. Thus, the user candeploy portions of the source code onto devices other than the device onwhich the program is stored. Where the program is written in a graphicalprogramming language, as described above, the user may select one ormore nodes in the graphical program and drag and drop them on the seconddevice icon, e.g., or various device icons.

This graphical association may cause deployment of the source codeportion onto the second device for execution on the second device. Inaddition, the system may modify the program to configure the program toinvoke execution of the source code portion on the second device. Thus,when the program executes, the program invokes execution of the deployedsource code portion on the second device.

Alternatively, where the program is written in an object-orientedprogramming language, and the software objects are represented by icons,the user may associate or drag and drop the various software objecticons to various device icons to deploy these software objects onvarious devices.

FIG. 25—Adding Program Code to Another Program

In one embodiment, the user can manipulate program icons to add programcode to other programs. For example, the user can select a first programicon or node, which may be associated with a device (e.g. a firstdevice), and associate this first program icon with (e.g., drag and droponto) a second program icon of a second device (or of the first device).This may cause the code (source code) of the second program (whichcorresponds to the second program icon) to be displayed. The user maythen further graphically navigate, e.g., move or drag, the first programicon within the source code of the second program that has beendisplayed and drop or place the first program icon at a respectivelocation in the source code. The first program corresponding to thefirst program icon may be deployed to the second device for executionwithin the second program on the second device. Alternatively, at theuser's option, the first program may remain on the first device, and beconfigured for remote invocation by the second program on the seconddevice.

In another embodiment, the user may first cause the source code of thesecond program (e.g., a block diagram of a graphical program) to bedisplayed, and then the user may associate a first program icon with (orinto) the displayed source code (e.g., the displayed block diagram). Theuser may then further graphically navigate the first program icon withinthe displayed source code of the second program and drop or place thefirst program icon at a respective location in the source code. This maycause the various operations to be performed as mentioned above.

FIG. 25 is a flowchart diagram illustrating one embodiment of operationof adding program code to another program. FIG. 25 illustrates anembodiment where the user associates a first program icon with a secondprogram icon, thereby causing the source code of the second program tobe displayed. Many of the operations described below are similar wherethe user associates a first program icon with source code of a programthat is already displayed.

As shown, in step 522 the user can select a first program icon or nodeassociated with a device (e.g. a first device) and associate this firstprogram icon with (e.g., drag and drop onto) a second program icon of asecond device (or of the first device). As noted above, this associationmay be performed using any of the techniques described above, e.g., byusing drag and drop techniques, menus, dialog boxes, or speechrecognition, among other methods. The user may also provide additionaluser input (e.g., using the keyboard or a pop-up dialog) indicating thatthe first program is to be configured as a node in the graphicalprogram.

This association may cause the code (e.g., the source code) of thesecond program corresponding to this second program icon toautomatically be displayed. The first program icon (or another nodewhich represents the first program) may be displayed in the displayedsource code of the second program to allow the user to further positionthe first program icon (or other node) at a desired location in thedisplayed source code. In one embodiment, a new node, which mayrepresent an invocation of the first program, may be displayed in thesource code. When the source code is graphical source code, thegraphical program or block diagram may appear, and the program icon (oranother node that is operable to invoke the respective program) may bedisplayed within the graphical program. When the source code is atext-language program, the text language source code may be displayed,and the first program icon may appear within the displayed text languagesource code.

Thus, where the second program icon corresponds to a graphical programin step 524, this association may cause the block diagram correspondingto this program icon to automatically be displayed in step 532. Forexample, when the user drags and drops the first program icon proximateto or onto the second program icon, the block diagram that correspondsto the second program icon may automatically appear at the location ofthe second program icon (or at a different location). The first programicon (or a new node, possibly having a different iconic appearance) mayappear in the displayed block diagram for further positioning ornavigation by the user.

In one embodiment, the first program icon appears in the displayed blockdiagram for further positioning or navigation by the user. The firstprogram icon may also be configured as a node (referred to as the “firstprogram node”) at this time. Configuring the first program icon as afirst program node may simply comprise creating (or storing) programinstructions and or data structures that are associated with the firstprogram icon. This configuration is described below in step 536.

As used herein, the term “first program node” simply connotes a node inthe graphical program that is associated with the first program in someway, e.g., is operable or executable in the graphical program to accessfunctionality or capabilities of the first program. For example, thefirst program node may be operable to invoke execution of the firstprogram, read and/or write values from/to the first program, get/setattributes of the first program, transmit/receive events to the firstprogram, programmatically modify the first program, programmaticallydeploy the first program, or perform other functions associated with thefirst program. The first program node preferably has an icon thatappears in the graphical program, and underlying program instructionsand/or data structures that implement the operation of the first programnode. The first program node icon may have the appearance of the firstprogram icon, or another appearance. For example, the first program nodeicon may have an appearance similar to the first program icon, butmodified to include the appearance of the first device icon of the firstdevice on which the first program is executing. The user may also createor select a custom appearance for the first program node, as desired.

Alternatively, a new node may appear in the graphical program forfurther navigation by the user, wherein the new node is associated withthe first program as described above. The new node may be present in thegraphical program development environment and specifically designed foraccessing functionality of the first program. For example, the new nodemay be specifically designed for accessing functionality of programs ingeneral, or of certain types of programs.

In step 534 the user may then further graphically navigate, e.g., moveor drag, the first program icon (or “new node”) within the block diagramthat has been displayed and drop or place the first program icon (or“new node”) at a respective location in the block diagram. Thus, wherethe second program icon corresponds to a graphical program, the user maygraphically position the first program icon within the block diagram ofthe graphical program. In one embodiment, the user may select a flowpath, such as a data flow wire, in which to position or “drop” the firstprogram icon. The first program icon may then be inserted on to or inthe execution or data path of the selected wire in the second blockdiagram of the graphical program and configured to execute. For example,when the user selects a data flow path connected between a source nodeand a destination node, the first program icon may be inserted as a nodein the data flow path with an input terminal connected to an outputterminal of the source node and with an output terminal connected to aninput terminal of the destination node. The input and output terminalsmay be automatically created for the first program icon. Where the firstprogram is also a graphical program, the first program icon may beinserted as a sub-VI in the second graphical program or block diagram.

Where the first program icon is dropped or inserted the path of aselected wire in the second graphical program, the method mayautomatically create one or more input terminals and/or one or moreoutput terminals on the first program icon based on at least one of:parameters of the first program and parameters of the graphical program,e.g., parameters of the source and/or destination nodes to which thefirst program icon is being connected. The input terminals and/or outputterminals may be automatically created with the appropriate data typesbased on the preceding and/or subsequent (source and/or destination)nodes in the block diagram to which the first program icon will connect.The method may also involve automatically (or manually) connecting atleast one of the input terminals and/or output terminals of the firstprogram icon to an existing node in the graphical program.

In step 536 positioning of the first program icon in the source code maycause additional source code, e.g., program instructions/data structuresand/or one or more nodes, to be included in the second program. Forexample, where the second program icon corresponds to a graphicalprogram, the first program icon may be copied or inserted into thedisplayed block diagram at the selected location, effectively resultingin a new node (the “first program node”) in the block diagram. This mayalso cause program instructions and/or data structures to be included inthe second graphical program which represent functionality of the firstprogram, or which are operable to call the first program. These programinstructions and/or data structures may be associated with the firstprogram node in the second graphical program. Thus, in one embodiment,the first program node may comprise an icon having the appearance of thefirst program icon, and underlying program instructions and/or datastructures that execute the functionality of the first program node.

The first program node may be created during or after positioning instep 536, when the first program icon is initially displayed in step532, or at other times during the method.

In one embodiment, the program instructions and/or data structuresassociated with the first program icon (e.g., comprising a part of thefirst program node) may be executable to access functionality orcapabilities of the first program in some fashion. For example, in oneembodiment, the program instructions and/or data structures associatedwith the first program icon (e.g., comprising a part of the firstprogram node) may be executable to invoke execution of the first programon the first device. Thus the graphical program (including the programinstructions and/or data structures) may execute on the second device,and when the first program icon node in the graphical program executes,the first program icon node (or the underlying program instructionsand/or data structures) may operate to invoke the first program toexecute on the first device. In another embodiment, the executable codewhich comprises the first program icon may be deployed to the device(e.g., the second device) on which the second graphical program islocated, and the first program icon may appear as a node (first programnode) in the second graphical program and be associated with theexecutable code. Thus, when the first program node in the graphicalprogram executes, the first program node (or the underlying programinstructions and/or data structures) may operate to invoke the firstprogram to execute on the second device. Alternatively, the executablecode comprising the first program may itself be the “underlying programinstructions and/or data structures” of the first program node. Asanother example, the program instructions and/or data structuresassociated with the first program icon (e.g., comprising a part of thefirst program node) may be executable to read data from the firstprogram, write data to the first program, get/set attributes of thefirst program, modify the first program, or perform other functionsassociated with the first program, as mentioned above.

In another embodiment, a new node (e.g., a node whose special purpose isto invoke execution of programs on other devices) may be created in thesecond graphical program that is operable to invoke the first program.In this instance, the first program may remain where it is and beremotely accessed or invoked.

Where the first program is a software object, in one embodiment theprogram instructions and/or data structures associated with the firstprogram icon may be executable to invoke methods of the software object,get/set properties of the software object, and/or provide/receive eventsto/from the software object, or otherwise access functionality of thesoftware object.

In step 538 the first program corresponding to the first program iconmay be deployed to the second device for execution with the blockdiagram on the second device. Alternatively, at the user's option, thefirst program may remain on the first device, and configured for remoteinvocation and execution on the first device by a node (e.g., firstprogram node) in the block diagram executing on the second device.

As noted above, the first program may not be a graphical program. Forexample, the first program may be written in a text-based programminglanguage, such as Pascal, Fortran, C, C++, Java, Basic, etc. In oneembodiment, the graphical program is created in a first graphicalprogram development environment, and the first program is not present inthe first graphical program development environment. For example, thefirst program may be created in a second program developmentenvironment, wherein the second program development environment isdifferent than the first graphical program development environment. Thefirst program thus may be operable to execute independently of thegraphical program and/or the first program may exist prior to creationof the graphical program.

As noted above, the first program icon that is being dragged and droppedinto the block diagram may be of a different type than the graphicalprogram, such as a DLL or an executable program compiled from a textbased programming language, etc. When the user drags and drops thisfirst program icon into the block diagram corresponding to the second ordestination program icon (e.g., on to a respective dataflow path) thismismatch in types may be automatically detected (or the user maymanually indicate the mismatch), and a node may be automatically createdthat is able to invoke or call this type of program. For example, if thefirst program is a DLL, and the user drags the first program icon into ablock diagram (e.g., on to a data flow wire of a block diagram), thegraphical program development environment (or other software) may detectthat the first program is a DLL, and a node, e.g., a “DLL node” may beinserted into the block diagram that is configured to invoke the firstprogram as a DLL. The DLL node may have the appearance of the firstprogram icon. The user may then “wire up” the DLL node, or if the userdropped the first program icon on to a respective data flow wire, theDLL node may appear connected to the wire. As another example, if thefirst program is a software object, and the user drags the first programicon into a block diagram, the graphical program development environmentmay detect that the first program is a software object, and a node,e.g., an “object node” may be inserted into the block diagram that isconfigured to invoke methods, get/set attributes, etc, of the firstprogram as a software object. Alternatively, the first program may beprogrammatically converted into a graphical code format, e.g., LabVIEWcode, and this created graphical code may execute natively in the blockdiagram. As another alternative, a graphical program code “wrapper” maybe created around the first program, thus enabling the first program toexecute in the graphical program development environment.

Where the second program icon corresponds to a textual programminglanguage based program in step 524, this association may cause thetextual source code corresponding to this program icon to automaticallybe displayed in step 542.

In step 544 the user may then further graphically navigate, e.g., moveor drag, the first program icon within the textual source code that hasbeen displayed and drop or place the first program icon at a respectivelocation in the textual source code.

In step 546 this may cause a call or invocation (e.g., a function call)to the first program to be copied or inserted into the displayed textualsource code of the second program at the selected location. The type ofcall inserted into the displayed textual source code of the secondprogram may depend on whether the first program is a graphical programor another type of program.

In step 548 the first program corresponding to the first program iconmay be deployed to the second device for execution with the blockdiagram on the second device. Alternatively, at the user's option, thefirst program may remain on the first device, and configured for remoteinvocation by the textual source code program (after compilation) on thesecond device.

Thus the user can select a first program icon associated with a deviceand associate this first program icon with (e.g., drag and drop onto) asecond program icon of a different device. Where the second program iconcorresponds to a graphical program, this association may cause the blockdiagram corresponding to the second program icon to automatically bedisplayed. In another embodiment, the user may first cause the graphicalprogram or block diagram to be displayed, and then may select a firstprogram icon associated with a device and associate this first programicon with (e.g., drag and drop into) the displayed graphical program orblock diagram. The user may then further graphically navigate, e.g.,move or drag, the first program icon within the block diagram that hasbeen displayed and drop or place the first program icon at a respectivelocation in the graphical program.

This may cause different things to happen:

In response to the association, the first program icon may be copied orinserted into the displayed block diagram at the selected location. Thefirst program corresponding to the first program icon may be deployedfrom the first device onto the second device for execution on the seconddevice with the block diagram

In response to the association, the first program may remain on thefirst device and be configured for remote invocation by the blockdiagram on the second device. For example, the user can drag and dropother program icons onto a node icon in the graphical program to specifythat the respective programs are invoked by the graphical program, e.g.,by a specific node in the graphical program.

If the user drags and drops the first program icon onto a second programicon that corresponds to a graphical program, then that first programicon may be inserted at the appropriate location in the destinationgraphical program as a graphical program node, or a sub-program or“sub-VI”. For example, the block diagram of the destination graphicalprogram may appear and the user may then select a flow path, such as adata flow wire, in which to “drop” the first program icon. The firstgraphical program may then be inserted on to or in the execution or datapath of the selected wire in the second block diagram of the graphicalprogram and configured to execute. If the first program icon which isbeing associated (e.g., dragged and dropped) also corresponds to agraphical program, then the first program icon may be inserted as asub-VI.

The first program icon that is being dragged and dropped into the sourcecode, e.g., block diagram, may also be of a different type, such as aDLL or an executable program compiled from a text based programminglanguage, etc. When the user drags and drops this first program iconinto the block diagram corresponding to the destination program icon,and optionally on to a respective dataflow path, a node may beautomatically created, e.g., in the respective dataflow path, that isable to invoke or call this program, or that represents execution ofthis program. For example, if the first program is a DLL, and the userdrags the first program icon on to a data flow wire of a block diagram,a “DLL node” may be inserted into the block diagram that is configuredto invoke the first program as a DLL. Alternatively, the first programmay be programmatically converted into a graphical code format, e.g.,LabVIEW code.

Where the second program icon corresponds to a textual programminglanguage based program, this association may cause the textual sourcecode corresponding to this program icon to automatically be displayed.The user may then further graphically navigate, e.g., move or drag, thefirst program icon within the textual source code that has beendisplayed and drop or place the first program icon at a respectivelocation in the textual source code. This may cause a call or invocation(e.g., a function call or method invocation) to the first program to becopied or inserted into the displayed textual source code of the secondprogram at the selected location. The type of call inserted into thedisplayed textual source code of the second program may depend onwhether the first program is a graphical program or another type ofprogram.

FIG. 26—Incorporating a Device Icon Into a Program

As mentioned above, the user may associate (e.g., drag and drop) adevice icon into the source code of a program, similar to dragging anddropping a program icon into the source code of a program as describedabove. The device may correspond to a first device, and the program maybe stored on a second different device. The following describes thisoperation where the program or source code is a graphical program orblock diagram. However, the description below also applies where theprogram or source code is written in a textual programming language.

After the association of a device icon with (or into) a block diagram orgraphical program, the user may then optionally indicate an operationthat is desired with respect to this device in the block diagram. Forexample, the user may drag and drop a device icon of a first device intoa block diagram, wherein this indicates that the block diagram shouldcreate code and/or data structures, and/or should include a node icon inthe diagram, which operates to programmatically access this device topublish and/or subscribe data to/from the device. Other types ofoperations are also contemplated.

FIG. 26 is a flowchart illustrating operation of creating or modifying agraphical program by associating device nodes with the graphicalprogram. For example, the user may use a configuration diagram asdescribed herein to aid in creating (or configuring) a portion or all ofa graphical program.

As shown, in step 642 the graphical program may be displayed on thedisplay. For example, where the graphical program includes a blockdiagram, the block diagram may be displayed. The user may havepreviously included various nodes or icons in the graphical program andmay have connected various ones of these nodes.

As described above, the block diagram may automatically be displayed inresponse to an association performed by the user in step 644. In otherwords, the user may drag and drop a device icon onto a program icon inthe configuration diagram. Where the program icon represents a graphicalprogram, this may cause the block diagram corresponding to the programicon to be automatically displayed. The device icon may thenautomatically appear in the block diagram for further navigation orpositioning by the user.

In step 644 the user may associate (e.g., drag and drop) one or moredevice icons into the block diagram. For example, the user mayassociate, e.g., drag and drop a first device icon corresponding to afirst device into the block diagram of a graphical program stored on asecond device. Where the block diagram is already displayed, this maycomprise the user simply selecting a device icon with a mouse anddragging the device icon into the displayed block diagram. As describedabove, where the block diagram is not already displayed, and a programicon is displayed on the configuration diagram that represents thegraphical program or block diagram, the user can select the device iconwith a mouse and drag the device icon proximate to or onto the programicon (or use other graphical association techniques). This may cause thegraphical program or block diagram corresponding to this program icon tobe displayed, with the device icon displayed in the graphical program orblock diagram for further graphical positioning by the user. This mayinstead cause a “new node”, such as a “device access node” to bedisplayed in the block diagram, wherein this “new node” may begraphically positioned by the user.

In step 646 the user may graphically position the device icon to adesired location in the block diagram. For example, in step 646 the usermay then further graphically navigate, e.g., move or drag, the deviceicon (or “new node”) within the block diagram that has been displayedand drop or place the device icon (or “new node”) at a respectivelocation in the block diagram. Thus, where the program icon correspondsto a graphical program, the user may graphically position the deviceicon (or new node) within the block diagram of the graphical program. Inone embodiment, the user may select a flow path, such as a data flowwire, in which to position or “drop” the device icon (or new node). Thedevice icon (or new node) may then be inserted on to or in the executionor data path of the selected wire in the second block diagram of thegraphical program and configured to execute. For example, when the userselects a data flow path connected between a source node and adestination node, the device icon may be inserted as a node in the dataflow path with an input terminal connected to an output terminal of thesource node and with an output terminal connected to an input terminalof the destination node. The input and output terminals may beautomatically created for the device icon.

In step 648 the actions performed by the user in steps 644 and 646 maycause the automatic creation of nodes in the block diagram to publishand/or subscribe to data from the respective device(s), or perform otherfunctions associated with the devices. Automatic creation of a node inthe block diagram may comprise displaying the device icon in the blockdiagram, and automatically creating program instructions and/or datastructures associated with the device icon which perform functionalityassociated with the device, such as accessing (reading and/or writingdata values from/to the device). Automatic creation of a node in theblock diagram may also comprise displaying a new node (e.g., “a deviceaccess node”), and creating or including program instructions and/ordata structures associated with the new node, that is operable to accessthe device during graphical program execution. Where the new node hasthe appearance of the device icon, then the above two operations may besimilar.

Thus the automatic creation of node(s) in the block diagram may compriseautomatic creation of program instructions and/or data structure whichperform functionality of the node(s). For example, the device icon mayappear in the block diagram, and underlying code or data structures maybe created that correspond to the device icon which operate to publishand/or subscribe to data from the respective device(s), or perform otherfunctions associated with the devices.

As one example, the user may configure a measurement application byinserting a loop structure, such as a While loop, into a block diagram.The user may then drag and drop one or more device icons into the Whileloop. The device icons may correspond to various devices which producedata, such as sensor or transducer devices, or instrument devices. Asdescribed above, when a user associates (e.g., drags) a device icon onto a program icon, and the program icon corresponds to a graphicalprogram, this may cause the block diagram of the graphical program toautomatically appear in the display, whereby the user can then furthernavigate the device icon at an appropriate location in the blockdiagram. Alternatively, if the block diagram window of the graphicalprogram is already open on the display, such as in a separate window,the user may simply drag and drop a device icon from the configurationdiagram onto the graphical program block diagram.

When the device icon(s) corresponding to the sensors or instruments aredropped into the While loop of the block diagram, code and/or graphicalprogram data structures may be created with respect to the block diagramthat are operable to access these devices, or use these devices in someway. The device icons which are dragged and dropped into the blockdiagram may retain the same appearance, i.e., as device icons containedin the block diagram. Alternatively, this may cause new nodes to beprogrammatically created in the diagram which are operable to accessthese devices and obtain the data.

After this operation, the device icons (or other nodes) may appearwithin the block diagram, indicating that data is being accessed from(or other functions are being performed with respect to) these devices.A further visual indication may also be provided as to whether thesedevices are publishing data to the diagram or subscribing to data fromthe diagram, i.e., whether the diagram is subscribing to data from thesedevices, or publishing data to these devices. The While loop mayindicate repetitive operation of the device icon(s) in reading and/orwriting data from/to the respective device(s).

FIGS. 27A-E—Example of Incorporating a Device Icon into a Program

FIGS. 27A-E are screen shots illustrating a sequence where the userdrags a device icon onto a particular program icon, and inserts thedevice icon into the program represented by the program icon. Theexample described in FIGS. 27A-E applies whether the user isincorporating a device icon or a program icon into the program. In otherwords, although FIGS. 27A-E are described in the context of the userdragging a device icon into the source code of a program, this exampleoperates a similar manner (and in one embodiment in an identical manner)when the user drags a program icon into the source code of a program.

As shown, FIG. 27A illustrates a first configuration diagram (“breadfactory configuration diagram”) which includes two computer systemdevice icons and an oven controller device icon. The user can associateor drag-and-drop the oven controller device icon onto a configurationdiagram icon, another device icon, a program icon, or other icon presentin the configuration diagram. As shown in FIG. 27A, the user associatesor drags-and-drops the oven controller device icon onto a configurationdiagram icon, i.e., an icon that represents a second configurationdiagram. In FIG. 27A, the second configuration diagram is referred to asthe “cookie factory configuration diagram”.

When the user associates or drags and drops the oven controller deviceicon on the cookie factory configuration diagram, the cookie factoryconfiguration diagram may be automatically expanded to show one or moredevice icons comprised in the configuration diagram. In the screen shotof FIG. 27B, the cookie factory configuration diagram has been expandedto show two device icons representing computer systems that performmanufacturing and packing. These two computer system device icons may beconnected by a link, as shown.

As shown in FIG. 27C, the user may further choose to expand themanufacturing computer device icon to reveal another device iconreferred to as “Baking”. For example, the manufacturing device icon maybe expanded in a hierarchical fashion to reveal devices that performmanufacturing functionality. Alternatively, all device icons present inthe configuration diagram may be automatically displayed when theconfiguration diagram is initially expanded in FIG. 27B.

As shown in FIG. 27D, the user may then choose to view one or moreprogram icons present in the device icon. As shown, a program iconrelated to oven management (“Oven Mgt”) has been displayed. In oneembodiment, when the user positions the oven controller device icon overthe final device icon in the hierarchy (i.e., there are no furtherdevice icons in the hierarchy, the top level (or all) program icons maybe automatically displayed.

The user may then select an option to view the program represented bythis program icon. In one embodiment, when the user positions a deviceicon, such as the oven controller device icon, over the respectiveprogram icon, the program (source code and/or user interface of theprogram) may be automatically displayed. Alternatively, when the userpositions the oven controller device icon over the respective programicon, the user may provide further input to view one or more aspects ofthe program (source code and/or user interface of the program). In thisexemplary embodiment, the program is a graphical program, and agraphical program block diagram is displayed as shown in FIG. 27E. FIG.27E illustrates a very simple and exemplary graphical block diagramwhich includes a loop structure and includes a single existing icon ornode. The graphical program may have a larger number of interconnectednodes, such as those shown in FIGS. 24A and 24B.

In one embodiment, when the user associates a device icon with a programicon corresponding to a graphical program, and the diagram portion ofthe graphical program is displayed, the device icon appears in thediagram portion. In another embodiment, when the user associates adevice icon with a program icon corresponding to the graphical program,and the diagram portion of the graphical program is displayed, a newgraphical program node appears in the diagram portion. This newgraphical program node corresponds to the respective device and mayrepresent functionality performed by the device. This graphical programnode may have the same or a different appearance than the device icon towhich it corresponds. The graphical program node may be programmaticallycreated based on information in the device icon, or may be a genericdevice access node for accessing a device.

Although not shown in FIG. 27E, the user may then choose to navigate ormove the device icon or graphical program node within the graphicalblock diagram. For example, the user can position the device icon at acertain location in the diagram, which indicates a certain type ofoperation. As another example, the user can “wire up” the device icon(or the created graphical program node) with other nodes or iconsalready present in the block diagram. In this operation, the graphicalprogram may automatically create terminals on the device icon (or on thecreated graphical program node), possibly based on the terminals of theexisting nodes in the block diagram to which the user is connecting thedevice icon.

As another example, the user can navigate or move the device icon ornode onto an existing wire or connection path and place the device iconor node as a graphical program node in this connection path. Forexample, the user can navigate or position the device icon or node to afirst location on a wire in the graphical program after a first node inthe graphical program. The method may then display the device icon ornode as a node connected to an output of the first node in the graphicalprogram. The user can also navigate or position the device icon to afirst location on a wire in the graphical program before a second nodein the graphical program. The method may then display the device icon ornode as a node in the graphical program connected to provide an outputto the second node in the graphical program. As another example, theuser can navigate or position the device icon or node to a wire orconnection path in the diagram between a first node and a second node,and cause the device icon to appear in the diagram as a node connectedin the connection path between the first node and the second node.

The device icon, or a node that represents the device icon, may havevarious functionality. For example, the node may invoke functionality ofthe device represented by the device icon, simulate operation of thedevice, invoke programs on the device, acquire data from the device,generate data to the device, etc. In one embodiment, a GUI element mayappear, such as a menu, and the user can select the functionalitydesired.

As described above, the method may programmatically create a node in thediagram which performs an operation associated with the device icon. Inone embodiment, the device icon is automatically modified, or a new nodeis automatically created, which includes one or more input terminalsand/or one or more output terminals for connection to other nodes in thediagram. The input terminals and/or output terminals may be createdbased on parameters of the respective graphical program (or nodes in thegraphical program) or of the device corresponding to the device icon.The user may then connect these terminals to other nodes in the diagram.The respective terminals may also be programmatically connected to othernodes in the diagram. Alternatively, the user may manually configureterminals for the node, e.g., configure a connector pane for the node.Type propagation checking may also be performed to ensure thatincompatible data types are not connected to/from this node.

Therefore, this embodiment of the present invention allows the user toassociate or drag and drop a device icon onto a respective program icon.The user can associate a device icon directly onto a respective programicon that is currently displayed, or the user can navigate through aconfiguration diagram/device icon/program icon hierarchy to view adesired program icon. The source code of the program may be displayed,and the user can position the device icon in the source code. If therespective program icon corresponds to a graphical program, the diagramportion of the graphical program may be displayed, with the respectivedevice icon (or a node corresponding to the device icon) displayed inthe graphical program diagram. The user may then navigate or move thedevice icon (or node) to a desired location in the graphical program,and optionally wire up or connect the device icon with other nodes inthe graphical program, etc.

The method described above may also operate where the programrepresented by the program icon is a text based program. For example,when the user associates or drags and drops a device icon onto a programicon that represents a text based program, the text based source code ofthe program may be displayed. The user may then be able to navigate thedevice icon into a particular location into the textual source code.This may cause a function call or other appropriate textual source codeto be inserted at this location in the textual source code.

In another embodiment, when the user associated or drags and drops adevice icon onto a program icon, the user interface (e.g., front panel)of the program may appear. In one embodiment, the user has the choice ofhaving either the source code or diagram portion of the program appear,or the user interface or front panel of the program to appear, or both.Alternatively, the user may open the user interface or front panel ofthe program and then drag and drop the device icon directly to the userinterface. The user may navigate the device icon (or node) to anappropriate location in the user interface. The operation of associatinga device icon with a user interface may cause a GUI element (e.g., acontrol or indicator) to appear in the user interface. This operationmay also cause a “binding” to occur between the GUI element and datagenerated by and/or acquired by the respective device.

The above operations greatly facilitate the creation of graphicalprograms and the distribution of portions of these graphical programs todifferent devices in a distributed system. For example, the user cancreate a graphical program in various manners and then during or afterthe graphical program creation the user can associate (e.g., drag anddrop) icons from within the block diagram to different devices to deployor distribute the functionality represented by these node icons in thediagram on to these respective devices. Also, the user can associatedevice icons into a graphical program, or can associate other programicons for various devices into the graphical program.

These techniques provide a simple and convenient way for a user tocreate an application using a graphical program, whereby the user candeploy different programs of the graphical program application todifferent devices, or incorporate functionality associated with otherdevices or programs using device icons or program icons, respectively.

FIGS. 28A and 28B

FIGS. 28A and 28B are screen shots illustrating incorporating a programicon from a configuration diagram into a graphical program. FIG. 28Aillustrates a configuration diagram which includes a device icon 802that represents a host computer, and a device icon 804 that represents ameasurement or control device, in this case a Fieldpoint device(referred to as “Engine Controller”) from National InstrumentsCorporation. The device icon 804 includes a number of associated programicons 842-850. In this example the program icons are service icons842-850. The service icons 842-850 include a Start icon 842 for startingthe application program, a Set Engine Params icon 844 for modifying orviewing parameters of the application or device, a Stop icon 846 forstopping the application, an Engine Status icon 848 for checking thestatus of the application or device and a Shut Down icon 850 forshutting down the application or device. Service icons represent a highlevel mechanism for interacting with an application or a device, and aredescribed further below.

FIG. 28B illustrates an example where the user associates or drags anddrops a program icon (e.g., program icon 846) onto a block diagram of agraphical program. In one embodiment, the program icon 846 may bedragged and dropped into the block diagram, and the program icon doesnot change its appearance during this operation. In another embodiment,when the program icon 846 crosses the border of the block diagram windowduring the drag and drop operation, the program icon 846 may change itsappearance, or a new node icon may be displayed in its place.

Once the program icon has been “dragged” or positioned in the blockdiagram, the user can then wire up this program icon 846 with othernodes in the graphical program. Alternatively, the user can drop orplace this program icon 846 onto a wire or link in the graphicalprogram. This may cause the program icon 846 to appear as a node in thegraphical program connected in the path of this wire or link. In oneembodiment, terminals may be automatically added to the program icon,wherein the wire or link connects to these terminals. Thus the programicon may be configured to connect to one or more other nodes in thegraphical program.

Configuring a Device Icon in a Configuration Diagram

FIG. 29 illustrates a simple configuration diagram or system panel. Asshown, this exemplary configuration diagram includes a device icon 802which represents a host computer, and a device icon 804 which representsa measurement or control device. In this example, the device icon 804represents a Fieldpoint device from National Instruments, which may beused for measurement or control applications. As shown, the user canselect the device icon 804 representing the Fieldpoint device, uponwhich one or more menus may be displayed. The user can select variousoptions from these menus.

As shown, the user can select the configuration option on a first menu.This selection produces a second menu that has items for network, I/O,and data points, e.g., tags. As used herein, the term “data point”includes a data point, I/O point, data tag, I/O channel data values, andother types of data values. The data point may be associated with orgenerated by a device, or may be calculated by a program. When the userselects the network option, the user may receive further options forconfiguring the IP address of the device, or a security aspect of thedevice.

Although not shown in FIG. 29, when the user selects the I/O selection,in one embodiment a measurement configuration program, such asMeasurement and Automation Explorer from National Instruments, may beinitiated to configure I/O channels. If I/O channels already exist orhave previously been configured, then these items may be displayed, asshown in FIG. 30. Thus, when the user selects the I/O or tags items inFIG. 29, if physical I/O points had previously been configured, or datapoints or tags had previously been configured, then informationregarding these may be displayed. For example, as shown in FIG. 30, ifthe user selects the I/O menu item, various configured I/O channels maybe illustrated, such as analog input, analog output, or digital I/O. Asalso shown in FIG. 30, if the user selects the tags or data points item,various configured data points may be shown, such as, e.g., pressure,temperature, RPM etc. Thus, as shown in FIG. 30, the system may displayconfigured I/O or configured data points. These items may be displayedin a “tree view”, or other suitable view. The system may also display an“add new” feature which allows the user to add new physical I/O or datapoints directly to the tree structure shown in FIG. 30.

FIG. 30 also shows an example where a user may select a help feature fora device icon. For example, the user may right click on the controller 1device icon 804 and select a help feature. The help window “ContextHelp” may then appear as shown in FIG. 30. The help window may providevarious information about the device, such as the name of the device,security privileges, installed software, IP address, calibrationinformation and other information. The help window may be contextsensitive. Thus, once a help feature has been selected, and a helpwindow appears as shown, the user may move his/her mouse across theconfiguration diagram to view context sensitive help related to otherdevice icons, program icons, or other items displayed. Thus, as the usermoves the mouse onto different device icons, this causes contextsensitive help for that respective device to appear in the help window.Similar operation occurs for other icons, such as program icons.

As also shown in FIG. 30, the user can select a data point item andselect various options. For example, the user can select an analog inputitem (e.g., AI1), which causes a menu to be displayed, from which theuser can probe the I/O point (data point) or configure properties of theI/O point. Another feature of the “tree view” shown in FIG. 30 is thatevery individual tree is preferably collapsible. Thus, the user canchoose to see only programs, only data points, only I/O channels, or anentire hierarchical view.

In large distributed systems, the configuration diagram (or systempanel) can include a number of different device icons. In oneembodiment, the user can select a particular device icon and cause thisdevice icon to be the only device icon displayed on the screen.Alternatively, the user can select a device icon, causing the deviceicon to be displayed in a separate panel. The user can then expand thedevice icon to view various views (e.g., tree views) of the device icon,such as program icons representing programs stored on the device, datapoints present in the device (such as I/O channels), configuration datasuch as IP address, etc. The user can also use a browse feature tobrowse among or discover new/old devices. The user can further select anoption to add/show new (or un-configured) devices automatically.

FIG. 31—Deploying a Program to a Device

FIG. 31 illustrates an example of deploying a program represented by aprogram icon onto a target device. The example shown in FIG. 31corresponds to the methods described above with respect to FIGS. 15-18.As shown, FIG. 31 illustrates a configuration diagram which includes adevice icon 802 that represents a host computer, and a device icon 804that represents a measurement or control device, in this case aFieldpoint device (referred to as “Controller1”) from NationalInstruments Corporation. As shown, the host computer device icon 802includes a program icon referred to as PID 806, which represents a PIDcontrol program. In this example, the PID program icon 806 represents aPID virtual instrument or VI developed in LabVIEW. As shown, the usercan select the PID program icon 806 and associate (e.g., drag and drop)the PID program icon 806 onto the target device icon 804, i.e., theFieldpoint device icon 804 referred to as Controller1. After the userhas performed this drag and drop operation, the program represented bythe program icon 806 is deployed onto the target device (Controller1).This is graphically illustrated in the configuration diagram whereby thePID program icon 806 a is shown displayed associated with, e.g.,underneath (and possibly connected with), the device icon correspondingto the Fieldpoint device.

After a program icon has been deployed onto the device, it may bedesirable to run the program or perform various debugging operations. Inone embodiment, the user can select the program icon and start theprogram, or configure the program to start at a selected time. In thecase where the device does not include its own native displaycapability, in one embodiment, debugging operations can be performedusing the display of the host computer system. The display of the hostcomputer system may be used to display debugging operations, such asexecution highlighting, single stepping and other debugging features,for a program that is executing inside the target device.

FIG. 32—Associating a Data Point (or I/O Channel) with a Program FrontPanel

FIG. 32 illustrates an example of a user selecting a data point itemassociated with a device icon (Controller1) and associating or draggingand dropping this data point item onto the user interface or front panelof a program. Similar operations may be performed when the userassociates a device icon with the user interface or front panel of aprogram. In this example, the user has selected the RPM (Revolutions PerMinute) data point item and has dragged and dropped this data point itemonto the front panel of a graphical program, such as the front panel ofa LabVIEW VI. When the user associates or drags and drops a data pointitem onto the user interface or front panel of a program, in oneembodiment, the system may automatically create or display a GUIelement, e.g., an indicator or control, in the user interface or frontpanel that is associated with this data point. This GUI element may be“bound” to the data point. For example, the GUI element may be used tomonitor the value of the data point in a “live” fashion, e.g., the valueof the data point may be displayed in the GUI element in real timeduring program execution. The binding may be accomplished using datasocket technology as described in U.S. Pat. No. ______ (application Ser.No. 09/185,161) titled “Data Socket System and Method for Accessing DataSources Using URLs”, which is hereby incorporated by reference. If theGUI element is a control, the GUI element may be used to control orchange the value or parameters of the data point, either statically ordynamically during run-time. This drag and drop operation may thus causea data binding to be created between the GUI element and the data point.Thus, the user can view this GUI element to monitor the value of thedata point in a “live” fashion, and may optionally adjust the data pointvalue or parameters associated with the data point value.

In one embodiment, when the user associates or drags and drops a datapoint onto a program front panel or user interface, the systemautomatically creates (e.g., selects an displays) a type of GUI elementthat is appropriate for the type of data represented by the data point.For example, if the data point represents a signal, the system mayautomatically create or display a chart, waveform or graph GUI elementthat is capable of displaying the signal. The range or scale of the GUIelement may also be configured to display the signal appropriately. Asanother example, if the data point represents a Boolean value, thesystem may automatically create a Boolean indicator. In addition, if thedata point is a read-only data point, that the system may create a anindicator for this data point. If the data point is write only, thesystem may create a control for this data point. If the data point isboth readable and writeable, then the system may create both a controland indicator for this item, or a single GUI element that is bothreadable and writeable.

It is noted that similar operations to those described above may beperformed when the user associates (e.g., drags and drops) an iconrepresenting other types of data points, such as an I/O element orchannel icon (such as AI1) onto a program front panel. Thus, when theuser associates (e.g., drags and drops) an I/O element or channel (suchas AI1) onto a program front panel, a GUI element (e.g., control orindicator) may be created which can be used to display the value of thechannel and/or manipulate the value of the channel. When the userassociates a device icon onto a program user interface or front panel, aGUI element may be created which displays data associated with thedevice, or which can control data associated with the device.

FIGS. 33A and 33B—Associating a Data Point (or I/O Channel) with aProgram Block Diagram

FIG. 33A illustrates an example where the user has selected a data pointitem, such as RPM, and has associated or dragged and dropped this datapoint item onto the block diagram of a graphical program. As shown, thisdrag and drop operation may cause a graphical program element, e.g., anode 824, to appear in the block diagram that corresponds to the datapoint item. The graphical program element 824 may correspond to the datapoint icon and may be operable to programmatically access, i.e., readand/or write values from/to the data point. In other words, thegraphical program element may be operable to read and/or write the datapoint during graphical program execution. This graphical program elementor node 824 may be configured with various functions or properties. Inthe example shown in FIG. 33A, the graphical program element has thecapability to “Log Historical Data” of the data point or “Get Trend” ofthe data.

As shown in FIG. 33B, the user can then connect this graphical programelement with other nodes in the block diagram to affect programmaticaccess, i.e., reading of or writing to, data and/or parameters of thisdata point. The user can also connect this graphical program elementwith GUI elements (or a terminal of a GUI element) to enable user accessor control of the data point.

For example, the user can connect the output of a function node (e.g.,“Calc RPM 822) in the graphical program to the graphical program element824 that represents the RPM data point (the “RPM graphical programelement). Thus, during graphical program execution, a function node maywrite a value to the RPM graphical program element 824 thatprogrammatically changes a parameter value or data value of the RPM datapoint. As another example, the user can wire an output of the RPMgraphical program element 824 to another function node (e.g., node 826)so that this other function node 826 can read parameter values or datavalues of this data point. As another example, the user can wire a GUIelement (or the terminal of a GUI element) to the RPM graphical programelement to enable the user to view or modify values associated with thedata point during (or either before or after) program execution.

In the example of FIG. 33B, the user has wired a “Calc RPM” node 822 toan input of the RPM node 824, wherein the Calc RPM node 822 operates tocalculate the RPM value for the data point and write this calculated RPMvalue to the RPM data point represented by node 824. The user has alsowired a data logging node 826 to an output of the RPM node 824, whereinthe data logging node 826 operates to log values of the RPM data pointto a file.

Thus, as described above with respect to FIGS. 32, 33A and 33B, with asimple drag and drop operation of a data point item onto the blockdiagram of a graphical program, a graphical program elementcorresponding to this data point is included in the diagram. The usercan easily configure the graphical program element that corresponds tothis particular data point for programmatic access or user access. Witha simple drag and drop operation of a data point item onto the frontpanel of a graphical program, a GUI element corresponding to this datapoint is included in the front panel. This allows user viewing ormodification of parameters or data of this data point during programexecution. In addition, the same functionality may be used for otheritems associated such as a device icon or program icon, or various typesof data points such as I/O channels, e.g., analog input, analog outputor digital I/O channels.

The user can of course also drag and drop other items associated withdevice icons into a program, such as the block diagram of a graphicalprogram. For example, as described above, the user can drag and dropprogram icons for a program stored on a device into the block diagram ofa graphical program. As another example, a device represented by deviceicon may include one or more files or configuration data, whereby theuser can select a graphical item or icon representing this file orconfiguration data and drag and drop this item onto the block diagram(or front panel) of a graphical program. This may also allowprogrammatic access to this file or configuration data.

It is also noted that the method described in FIGS. 32 and 33 may alsobe used with text based programs rather than graphical programs. Forexample, the user may drag and drop a data point item (e.g., I/O channelitem) into a particular location in a C-language program, causingappropriate function call or C programming statements to automaticallybe included in the program. These textual programming statements may beoperable to programmatically read and/or write to this data point. Theuser may also drag and drop a data point item (e.g., I/O channel item)into the user interface associated with a text language program, withsimilar operation as described above for the user interface of agraphical program.

FIG. 34—Start Up Application Feature

FIG. 34 illustrates an example where the user has previously deployed aprogram onto a target device as described above with respect FIG. 31. InFIG. 34, the user has selected the PID program icon associated withcontroller1 and has selected a “start up application” feature. When thisfeature is selected, every time the respective target device is poweredon or boots up, the program corresponding to the program icon isexecuted.

FIG. 35—Service Icons

FIG. 35 illustrates a device icon which includes a number of associatedservice icons. Service icons represent a high level mechanism forinteracting with an application or a device. As one exemplary use, itmay be presumed that a developer desires to create an application thatmay then be used by other users. In this example, the user may desire tohide various program icons which represent underlying programfunctionality, and rather only expose certain basic services of theapplication. In FIG. 35, service icons 842-850 are displayed whichcorrespond to starting the application program (842), modifying orviewing parameters of the application or device (844), stopping theapplication (846), checking the status of the application or device(848), or shutting down the application or device (850). Thus, the usercan package up an application and distribute his application to a numberof different users, whereby the receiving users may only view theservice icons 842-850. These service icons 842-850 provide basic highlevel functionality, without exposing the underlying program structure.

FIG. 36—Copying Device Settings to other Devices

FIG. 36 illustrates an example where a user desires to copy the settingsfrom a first device icon and then optionally “paste” or configure thesettings onto a second device icon corresponding to a second device.Here, the user may select or right click on a first device icon (e.g.,device icon 804) and select a “Copy settings from” option from a menu.This operates to copy the settings of the respective devicecorresponding to the first device icon 804. The user may then select asecond device icon (not shown) corresponding to a second device andpaste the settings onto that second device. This provides an easymechanism to copy settings among various devices.

Remote Debugging

In another embodiment, remote debugging of graphical program blockdiagrams may be performed in a distributed system. For example, where agraphical program is deployed on a remote device, the user at the maincomputer 82 may be able to select the device icon and/or select arespective program icon associated with the device and view the blockdiagram of the graphical program. The user may be able to view the blockdiagram on the display of the main computer system, wherein this blockdiagram is actually executing on a remote device. The user may then beable to use various debugging tools that are useful with respect toblock diagrams, such as break points, single stepping, and executionhighlighting.

The user thus may be able to use the displayed block diagram as agraphical user interface for debugging the block diagram executing onthe remote device. The user can single step through the block diagramexecuting on the remote device using the block diagram GUI displayed onthe main computer system display. Also, as a block diagram executes on aremote device, the user may be able to view the block diagram on themain computer system, wherein the respective nodes in the block diagramdisplayed on the main computer system are highlighted as these nodesexecute on the remote device. The user may also be able to view the dataoutput from each of the respective nodes on the block diagram displayedon the main computer system 82 as the respective nodes produce dataexecuting on the remote device.

Viewing Front Panels of Graphical Programs

As mentioned above, the user can select an option on a program iconwhich represents a program having a corresponding user interface orfront panel, wherein this selected option enables the user to view theuser interface or front panel, either statically or dynamically duringexecution. Thus, where the user has a configuration diagram includingdevice nodes and/or program nodes representing programs distributedthroughout the system, the user may be able to select any program iconin the distributed system and view the corresponding user interface orfront panel of the program as it executes. This provides the user theability to view the status of execution of programs to put on any of thevarious devices present in the system.

Asynchronous Data Flow Node

In another embodiment, the user may be able to include an asynchronousdata flow node or icon in two or more block diagrams or graphicalprograms to allow distributed execution among the two or more blockdiagrams or graphical programs. An asynchronous data flow icon mayinclude two portions which comprise part of the same queue or memory.One portion of the asynchronous data flow icon may be a reader portionand the other portion may be a writer portion. The user may thendistribute the reader and writer portions with different devices ordifferent programs, e.g., using the association techniques describedabove. Thus, a writer portion of the asynchronous dataflow node in afirst block diagram may operate to write data to the queue, and a readerportion of a second different block diagram may operate to read datafrom this queue. These reads and writes may occur asynchronously to eachother. This allows a first block diagram to communicate data to a secondblock diagram, wherein the data may be communicated asynchronously withrespect to the second block diagram. This asynchronous data flow mayalso be configured for bidirectional communication, i.e., with readersand writers in both the first and second block diagrams or graphicalprograms. This asynchronous data flow may be particularly desirablebetween a computer system and a remote device.

Therefore, with simple graphical tools, the present system helps a userselect and manage a system, such as a measurement system (e.g., a dataacquisition system) throughout its complete lifecycle. The toolsdescribed herein allow the user to select and order complete systems,including sensors, signal conditioning, data acquisition, industrialcomputers and software, (including machine vision, motion control,etc.). For example, the configuration diagram displayed on computer 82may be used by a user to aid in ordering devices or programs from anelectronic commerce site presented by server computer 90. The system mayalso operate to ensure that all components are compatible with eachother and that all required parts are order to enable the user to get upand running quickly.

The present system also may be used to help the user in connectinghis/her system together, providing cabling diagrams to help understandhow sensors, signal conditioning and data acquisition hardware connecttogether. The present system helps avoid polarity problems, groundcurrent loops, and missing connections. The system may even assist withsensor excitation requirements. One embodiment of the invention allowsthe user to design his/her own custom cabling interfaces.

In one embodiment, the present system starts with the user's graphicalsystem description and automatically configures easy-to-use DAQ ChannelNames—with sensor scaling and unit information built in. A configurationprogram, such as Measurement & Automation Explorer from NationalInstruments Corporation, can verify each of the input and outputchannels—in units or by reading raw voltages.

The present system may also operate to analyze thequality-of-measurement characteristics of configured devices to help theuser understand and document the overall measurement uncertainty in thesystem using industry-standard formulae and terminology. This informsthe user about the quality of the measurements.

As the user constructs a system, the graphical tools of the presentsystem make it easy for the user to document the system-whether thedocumentation of the system is for the user, or intended to satisfythorough corporate or legislative standards. Asset data can be storedlocally or in a variety of SQL-compatible databases. The user may havecomplete control over the format of generated reports. A number oftemplates are included, such as calibration reports, and financial assetmanagement.

The present system may also simplify system maintenance. The system mayoperate to remind the user when devices need to be re-calibrated. Thesystem may even be configured to prevent the user from takingmeasurements with devices that have expired calibration certificates.

The present system may also aid the user in deploying systems as theuser moves from the R&D lab to the production floor. The networkdeployment tools of the present system make it easy to replicate systemconfiguration to one or many destination machines. The system mayoperate to update information about the physical assets connected toeach deployed machine—device serial numbers and calibration data, forexample. The system may also include configuration management tools thatverify that all changes to a system are recorded.

Therefore, the system offers a number of advantages to the user. Thepresent system allows the user to create a graphical description(configuration diagram) of his/her physical system. The user may operateto select sensors, signal conditioning devices, data acquisitionhardware devices, measurement devices, automation devices, etc. for thesystem being developed.

Various other features of one embodiment of the invention are asfollows:

The system does not require hardware to operate.

The system creates custom DAQ Channels for the user's inputs andoutputs.

The system verifies that the configuration diagram elements or parts arecompatible.

The system may assists with cabling.

The user can annotate his diagram with additional free-form information.

The system can examine hardware to further document his system. Thesystem can, for example, query hardware for transducer electronic datasheets (TEDS), calibration dates, serial numbers, etc. The user cansupply this same data manually.

The system creates/modifies scaling information for the DAQ channelsbased on the TEDS.

The system can help a user produce a virtual TEDS for his sensor.(Physical Metrology).

The user can generate reports displaying this data. The display formatsare user-definable, and the system ships with several example templates.

The system can be used a pre-sales tool or an electronic commerce tool,including specification and validation of customer orders The system canhelp a user perform end-to-end calibration.

The system can help a user modify his documentation when a system isdeployed—e.g., re-detect hardware information, step the user throughphysical or end-to-end calibration, etc.

The system informs the user when calibration is due. The user canconfigure the system to produce warnings or fail to run entirely whencalibration is overdue.

The system can combine quality-of-measurement information from thesensors, conditioning and DAQ boards to produce an overall errorestimate. The system can assist users with expression of measurementuncertainty conforming to a variety of industry and governmentstandards.

The user can design custom cabling interfaces between DAQ hardware andsensors.

The system handles measurement and automation property management. Thesystem not only records calibration information, but also can report oninventory, reliability data, financial records, etc. (Alternatively, thesystem can interoperate with third-party property management tools suchas Fluke's MET/TRACK or MET/CAL.)

The system supports configuration management. The system at leastrecords all changes to the system, but perhaps also allows differentlevels of user access. The system may integrate with deployment tools sothat changes due to deployment are handled well.

FIGS. 37-44—Methods Related to the Creation and Use of ConfigurationDiagrams

FIGS. 37-44 flowchart various embodiments of methods for creating andusing diagrams, e.g., configuration diagrams, for performing variousfunctions on or for a system. It should be noted that in variousembodiments of the methods of FIGS. 37-44, some of the steps may beperformed in a different order than shown, or may be omitted. Additionalsteps may also be performed as desired. It is further contemplated thatvarious portions of the different methods described below may becombined.

Various embodiments of the invention may be implemented or performed bya stand alone system. In other embodiments, the system may be a clientsystem, where, as used herein, the term “client system” refers to asystem which communicates with another system, e.g., a server computersystem, to receive or use services provided by the other system, as iswell known in the art. The embodiments described below relate toclient/server embodiments of the invention, where the client system andthe server system each perform respective portions of the method,although this is not intended to limit the invention to any particularform or functionality. In the embodiments described below, the clientsystem may include a plurality of devices coupled together. In someembodiments, at least one of the devices includes, or is operable toinclude, one or more programs.

It is noted that in different embodiments, the client system may includedevices and software related to various applications and fields, suchas, for example, measurement, modeling/simulation, network management,control, and automation, among others, although these exampleapplications and fields are exemplary only, and are not intended tolimit the application of the method or the types of client systems toany particular domains or fields. Similarly, the devices and programsincluded in the client system may be of any of a variety of types. Forexample, the devices may include one or more of analog devices, digitaldevices, processor-based devices, and programmable hardware elements,e.g., field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), among others. Similarly,the programs included in the client system may be text-based programs,such as C, C++, Java, HTML, etc., graphical programs, such as LabVIEWgraphical programs, and/or hardware configuration programs, amongothers. For example, in an embodiment where at least one of theplurality of devices includes a field programmable gate array (FPGA), ahardware configuration program may be deployable on the FPGA to performa function, e.g., a measurement, control, automation, or modelingfunction, among others.

In one embodiment, the client system may comprise a rapid controlprototyping (RCP) system. As is known in the art, a goal of rapidcontrol prototyping is to enable new product prototypes to beimplemented and tested on real-time hardware, e.g., before the design ofthe product has been finalized and before the product has actually goneinto production. For example, according to the rapid control prototypingprocess, a control algorithm can be developed and deployed on a targetcontroller or target device. For example, the target device may includereal-time hardware that can execute the control algorithm, e.g., onconfigurable hardware such as an FPGA or DSP. The target device may bechosen to have characteristics similar to what the production devicewill have, e.g., in characteristics such as CPU, memory, I/O, etc.

The target controller or device that executes the control algorithmunder test may be coupled to a real physical system, i.e., the physicalsystem that the production device will be used to control. Thus, thetarget device executing the control algorithm may behave much the sameas if the production device were controlling the physical system.However, the process of deploying a control algorithm on the targetdevice may be performed significantly easier and more quickly than if aproduction device were manufactured to test each version of a controlalgorithm under test. For example, the programming environment used tocreate the control algorithm may provide support for automaticallydeploying the algorithm on the target device. Thus, the design/testprocess may be a very tightly closed loop, allowing designs to bequickly and easily tested and significantly speeding up the productdevelopment process.

Another typical use of simulation is known as “hardware-in-the-loop”simulation. With hardware-in-the-loop simulation, a real product may betested in conjunction with a simulated physical system. For example,consider a control unit designed to control a physical system. It may beimpractical to test the control unit with the real physical system thecontrol unit is designed to control. For example, the tests may be tooexpensive, too dangerous, or impossible, e.g., the real physical systemmay not exist yet. Thus, it may be desirable to couple the real controlunit to a simulated physical system to perform the tests. The simulationof the physical system may execute on real-time hardware so that thesimulation closely approximates the real system. As one example,consider a control unit designed to control an automobile. It may bedesirable to test how the control unit responds in a crash situation. Byperforming a hardware-in-the-loop simulation, the crash situation can besimulated without actually crashing a real automobile.

In one embodiment of a system for performing a hardware-in-the-loopsimulation, a measurement/control program may be utilized to measurecharacteristics of the real product being tested, e.g., a real controlunit, and/or to control operation of the real product. For example, themeasurement/control program may be utilized to gather information thatcan be analyzed to determine how well the real product under test isperforming. Also, the measurement/control program may be utilized tochange operation parameters of the real product, e.g., to determine howthis affects the operation of product under test. For further detailsregarding rapid control prototyping and hardware-in-the-loop techniques,please see U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/046,868 titled “Systemand Method for Performing Rapid Control Prototyping Using a Plurality ofGraphical Programs that Share a Single Graphical User Interface,” filedJan. 15, 2002, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/046,861 titled“System and Method for Performing a Hardware in the Loop SimulationUsing a Plurality of Graphical Programs that Share a Single GraphicalUser Interface,” filed Jan. 15, 2002, which were both incorporated byreference above.

In various embodiments of the methods described below, a diagram, e.g.,a configuration diagram, may be created and/or used to specify, manage,configure, and/or represent a system, e.g., a client system. The diagrammay include device icons representing each of the plurality of devicesin the system, link icons indicating coupling relationships between theplurality of devices, and program icons representing each of the one ormore programs. In one embodiment, the diagram is a configuration diagramrepresenting the hardware and software configuration of the system.Examples of configuration diagrams are described above with reference toFIGS. 21A and 21B, although it is noted that these configurationdiagrams are exemplary only, and are not intended to limit the diagramsto any particular form, style, or functionality. In other embodiments,the configuration diagram may represent a desired configuration of theclient system. In other words, some or all of the products, i.e.,devices and/or programs, represented in the configuration diagram maynot currently be included in the system, but may instead comprisedesired or proposed components of the system.

In one embodiment, the device icons in a configuration diagram may eachhave an appearance to visually indicate a type of the respective device.In other words, each device icon may visually or graphically indicatethe type of device that the device icon represents. Similarly, programicons in the diagram may each have an appearance to visually indicate atype of the respective program. As noted above, the configurationdiagram may also include links between the device icons indicatingrespective couplings between the devices in the client system. In oneembodiment, the link icons may each have an appearance to visuallyindicate a type of the respective link between devices. For example, alink icon may visually indicate whether the link is a serial, parallel,digital, analog, and/or wireless link, among others, or may indicatesuch characteristics as the signal or data type, e.g., power vs. data,direction of data flow, numbers of wires in the link, communicationprotocol, etc.

In one embodiment, the program icons may be visually displayedindicating an association with respective device icons representingrespective devices in which the programs are stored and/or executed. Forexample, the program icons may be visually displayed proximate torespective device icons representing respective devices in which theprograms are stored and/or executed. It should be noted that as usedherein, the term “proximate” refers to being on or near an item, e.g.,an icon, i.e., if a first icon is displayed proximate to a second icon,the first icon is sufficiently close to the second icon such that theuser would presume or understand an intended relationship between thetwo icons. Thus, a program icon may be located proximate to a deviceicon to represent the fact that the corresponding program is storedand/or executed on the corresponding device. In another embodiment, linkicons may be displayed coupling the program icons with the respectivedevice icons. Other graphical techniques associating the program iconswith the respective devices are also contemplated.

FIG. 37—Characterizing a Client System Over a Network

FIG. 37 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for characterizing aclient system over a network. More specifically, the flowchart describesa method for generating a diagram representing the hardware and softwareconfiguration of the client system. The embodiment of FIG. 37 ispreferably implemented in the system described above with reference toFIG. 1, where a client computer, e.g., the first computer system 82, iscoupled to a server computer system, e.g., the second computer system90, through a network 84 (or a computer bus).

As FIG. 37 shows, in 3702, electronic communication may be establishedbetween a server computer and a client system over a network, e.g., aLAN, WAN, the Internet, or any other transmission medium. For example,in one embodiment, a device in the client system, such as a clientcomputer 82, may initiate a network session with the server computer,e.g., by directing a web browser to a URL (Universal Resource Locator)of a website maintained on the server computer. Alternatively, theserver computer 90 may initiate communications with the client system,e.g., the client computer 82. It should be noted that in variousembodiments the communication between the server computer and the clientsystem may utilize any available communication protocols, e.g., TCP/IP,HTTP, Ethernet, 802.11, etc., as is well known in the art. Thus, throughany of a variety of approaches, electronic communication may beestablished between the server computer and the client system over anetwork.

As mentioned above, in a preferred embodiment, the client systemincludes a plurality of devices coupled together, where at least one ofthe devices includes one or more programs. Once communication isestablished between the server computer and the client system, then in3704, the server computer may programmatically determine informationregarding the plurality of devices and the one or more programs. Forexample, the server computer may programmatically analyze the clientsystem to determine the presence of one or more of the plurality ofdevices and the one or more programs. Thus, the determined informationmay comprise configuration information for the client system.

In one embodiment, the server computer may download an agent or programto the client system. The agent or program may then execute on theclient system, e.g., on a device of the client system, toprogrammatically determine the information regarding the plurality ofdevices and the one or more programs in the client system, and mayprovide the determined information to the server computer. In anotherembodiment, the server computer may access at least a portion of theinformation from at least one of the devices in the system. For example,the server computer (or the downloaded agent or program) mayprogrammatically determine the information by accessing plug and playinformation to determine the presence of the plurality of devices andthe one or more programs. As another example, programmaticallydetermining the information may include querying a configuration programresident on one of the devices in the system to determine the presenceof the devices and programs.

As noted above, in different embodiments, the client system may includedevices and software related to various applications and fields. Thus,for example, in an embodiment where the client system is a measurementsystem, the plurality of devices may include one or more measurementdevices which are each operable to perform a respective measurementfunction. Similarly, the one or more programs may include one or moremeasurement programs for performing measurement functions. Thus, theserver computer programmatically determining information regarding theplurality of devices and the one or more programs may includeprogrammatically determining a configuration of the one or moremeasurement devices and the one or more measurement programs in themeasurement system.

In an embodiment where the client system is a simulation or modelingsystem, the plurality of devices may include one or more devices whichare each operable to perform a respective simulation or modelingfunction, and the one or more programs may include one or moresimulation or modeling programs for simulating or modeling a process,device, and/or system. In this embodiment, the server computerprogrammatically determining information regarding the plurality ofdevices and the one or more programs may include programmaticallydetermining a configuration of the one or more devices and the one ormore programs in the simulation or modeling system.

As yet another example, in an embodiment where the client system is anautomation system, the plurality of devices may include one or moredevices which are each operable to perform a respective automationfunction, and the one or more programs may include one or moreautomation programs for automating a process, device, and/or system.Thus, in this embodiment, programmatically determining informationregarding the plurality of devices and the one or more programs mayinclude programmatically determining a configuration of the one or moreautomation devices and the one or more automation programs in theautomation system.

Similarly, in an embodiment where the client system is a network system,the plurality of devices may include one or more devices which are eachoperable to perform a respective network function, e.g., a networkmanagement function, and the one or more programs may include one ormore network programs for managing a network, such as, for example,configuring and/or managing hardware, such as switches, bridges,routers, hubs, network processors, etc., as well a network managementprograms, as described above in detail. For example, as also notedabove, network functions may include, but are not limited to, networktraffic logging and/or traffic analysis, e.g., data throughput, latency,topography, etc., as well as routing, testing, and so forth. Examples ofnetwork management products include NetView provided by IBM TivoliSoftware, BMC Software's Patrol, and SANPoint Control by VeritasSoftware Corporation, among others as described in detail above. Thus,in this embodiment, programmatically determining information regardingthe plurality of devices and the one or more programs may includeprogrammatically determining a configuration of the one or more networkdevices and the one or more network programs in the network system.

In response to determining the information regarding the device andprograms in the client system, the server computer may programmaticallygenerate a diagram which visually or graphically represents the system,as indicated in 3706. In other words, the diagram may be a configurationdiagram representing the hardware and software configuration of theclient system. As described above, the diagram may include device iconsrepresenting each of the plurality of devices, link icons indicatingcoupling relationships between the plurality of devices, and programicons representing each of the one or more programs.

In an embodiment where the server computer downloads an agent orprogram(s) to the client system to determine the information regardingthe plurality of devices and the one or more programs in the clientsystem, rather than providing the information to the server computer andthe server computer generating the diagram as described above, the agentor program(s) may instead use the determined information to generate thediagram. In other words, the agent or program(s) may execute on (adevice of) the client system to generate the diagram based on thedetermined information.

Once the diagram has been generated, e.g., by the server computer, thenin 3708, the server computer may transmit the diagram to the clientsystem. In an embodiment where the diagram is generated by softwareexecuting on the client system, the diagram may instead be transmittedby the client system to the server computer, or alternatively, may notbe transmitted at all.

Finally, in 3710, the diagram may be displayed, e.g., on a displaydevice of the client system, e.g., for viewing by a user of the clientsystem. In different embodiments, the server computer may cause thediagram to be displayed on the display device of the client system, orthe client system may initiate the display of the diagram. In oneembodiment, the configuration diagram may be stored in a memory mediumof the client system (or in a memory medium of the server computer),where the configuration diagram is usable for one or more of:documenting the client system configuration, modifying the client systemconfiguration, and adding/removing programs or devices to/from theclient system. In some embodiments, the diagram may also be usable indebugging the client system.

In one embodiment, a tree diagram which visually represents the systemmay be programmatically generated based on the programmaticallydetermined information, where the tree diagram displays a hierarchicalview of the plurality of devices and the one or more programs. The treediagram may also be displayed on the display. Thus, based on thedetermined information, a second or alternative view of the clientsystem may be generated and displayed. In one embodiment, any changesmade to one of the diagrams may automatically be reflected in the otherdiagram.

As noted above, in various embodiments, respective portions of themethod may be performed by the client system and the server system.Thus, in various embodiments, the server computer may perform at leastone of the programmatically determining information and theprogrammatically generating the diagram, and/or the client computer mayperform at least one of the programmatically determining information andthe programmatically generating the diagram. Alternatively, either orboth of the client system and the server system may perform at least aportion of the programmatically determining information and theprogrammatically generating the diagram.

For example, in one embodiment, where the system includes a firstcomputer system, and where a server computer is coupled to the systemover a network, the first computer system may programmatically determinethe information, e.g., based on Plug and Play information, by performinga discovery process on the system, etc. Electronic communication betweenthe server computer and the system may be established over a network,and the server computer may programmatically generate the diagram basedon the programmatically determined information. For example, the serversystem may query the first computer system for the information, thengenerate the diagram based on the information, or the first computersystem may proactively send the information to the server and requestthe diagram, in response to which the server system may generate thediagram.

Alternatively, the server computer may programmatically determine theinformation, and the first computer system may programmatically generatethe diagram based on the programmatically determined information. Forexample, as described above, the server computer may programmaticallydetermine the information in a variety of ways, e.g., by downloading anagent or program to the client system, by querying the client system,etc. The server system may then provide the information to the clientsystem, and the client system may generate the diagram based on theinformation. In one embodiment, the client system may generate thediagram using software downloaded from the server system. Thus, invarious embodiments, the client system and the server system maycooperatively implement the method described above.

In one embodiment, subsequent changes in the client system configurationmay automatically be reflected in the diagram. For example, afterdisplaying the diagram a first program may be deployed on the clientsystem. The method may then display a first program icon in the diagram,where the first program icon corresponds to the first program. Thus, inone embodiment, the diagram may automatically be updated when thehardware and/or software configuration of the client system changes.

In some embodiments, the diagram may be used to change the configurationof the client system. For example, user input may be receivedgraphically associating a first program icon with a first device icon,where graphically associating operates to deploy a first programcorresponding to the first program icon with a first devicecorresponding to the first device icon. In one embodiment, the user maydrag the first program icon onto the first device icon, therebyinitiating deployment of the first program onto the first device. Otherapproaches for associating the program icon with the device icon arealso contemplated. For example, the user may invoke a pop-up menu, e.g.,by right-clicking on the device icon or the program icon. The menu maythen receive user input specifying the program for deployment on thedevice, or alternatively, specifying the device as a target fordeployment of the program. As yet another example, the user may use apointing device to draw a line from the program icon to the device icon,indicating the desired deployment. Thus, if the user determines that theconfiguration diagram is incomplete or otherwise in need ofmodifications, the method may included receiving user input, e.g.,adding (or removing) icons, indicating additional hardware and/orsoftware to add to (or remove from) the system represented by thediagram. In other words, the user may manually specify additionalhardware and/or software or removal of hardware and/or software for thesystem configuration.

In one embodiment, the deployment of the program onto the device may beanimated. In other words, the diagram or a program associated with thediagram, may animate the deployment of the first program onto thedevice. It is noted that any of a variety of animation techniques may beused to perform the animation. For example, animating the deployment ofthe program may include moving the first program icon to a location inthe diagram proximate to the first device icon as the program isdeployed. As another example, one or more moving arrows may be displayedmoving from the program icon to the device icon. Of course, once thedeployment is complete, the animation may be stopped. Furtherinformation regarding animation of program deployment is provided belowwith reference to FIG. 38.

FIG. 38—Animating Deployment of a Program in a System

FIG. 38 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for animating deploymentof a program in a system, e.g., in a client system. More specifically,the flowchart describes a method for animating program deployment usinga configuration diagram representing the hardware and softwareconfiguration of the client system. The embodiment of FIG. 38 may beimplemented on computer system 82, or may be implemented in the systemdescribed above with reference to FIG. 1, where the client computer,e.g., the first computer system 82, is coupled to a server computersystem, e.g., the second computer system 90, through a network 84 (or acomputer bus).

In a preferred embodiment, the client system includes a plurality ofdevices coupled together, where at least one of the devices includes oneor more programs. As noted above, in different embodiments the clientsystem may include devices and software related to various applicationsand fields. For example, in various embodiments, the client system maybe a measurement system, where the plurality of devices include one ormore measurement devices which are each operable to perform a respectivemeasurement function, or, the client system may be a simulation (e.g.,modeling) system, where the plurality of devices include one or moredevices which are each operable to perform a respective simulationfunction, and where the one or more programs include one or moresimulation programs for simulating a process, device, and/or system. Inyet another embodiment, the client system may be an automation system,where the plurality of devices include one or more devices which areeach operable to perform a respective automation function, and where theone or more programs include one or more automation programs forautomating a process, device, and/or system. In a further embodiment,the client system may be a network system, where the plurality ofdevices include one or more devices which are each operable to perform arespective network function, and where the one or more programs includeone or more network programs for managing a network. Of course, otherapplications and/or fields of use are also contemplated, the examplesgiven being exemplary only.

As FIG. 38 shows, in 3802, a configuration diagram may be displayed,e.g., on a display device of the client system, where the configurationdiagram represents the devices in the client system. As described indetail above, the diagram may include device icons representing each ofthe plurality of devices, link icons indicating coupling relationshipsbetween the plurality of devices, and program icons representing each ofthe one or more programs.

Once the diagram has been displayed, then in 3804, a first program maybe deployed to the first device in the client system. For example, inone embodiment, the user may initiate deployment of the program onto thefirst device, e.g., user input may be received graphically associating afirst program icon with a first device icon, where graphicallyassociating operates to deploy a first program corresponding to thefirst program icon with a first device corresponding to the first deviceicon. In one embodiment, the user may drag the first program icon ontothe first device icon, thereby initiating deployment of the firstprogram onto the first device. Other approaches for associating theprogram icon with the device icon are also contemplated. For example,the user may invoke a pop-up menu, e.g., by right-clicking on the deviceicon or the program icon. The menu may then receive user inputspecifying the program for deployment on the device, or alternatively,specifying the device as a target for deployment of the program. As yetanother example, the user may use a pointing device to draw a line fromthe program icon to the device icon, indicating the desired deployment.In other embodiments, the user may initiated deployment of the programby various other means, as is well known in the art, such as, forexample, by double-clicking on the program icon, by entering textcommands on a command line, etc.

In other embodiments, the deployment of the first program onto the firstdevice may be performed programmatically, e.g., automatically. Forexample, in one embodiment, the program may be deployed automatically inresponse to installation of the first device in the client system. Inother words, the user may install or connect the first device in theclient system, and the program may be programmatically deployed, i.e.,without user input specifying the deployment, in response to theinstallation. For example, the first device may be installed in thesystem, the presence of the first device may be programmaticallydetected, and the program may be programmatically deployed in responseto said programmatically detecting presence of the first device.

In another embodiment, the program may be deployed automatically inresponse to the user purchasing the program, e.g., over the network,e.g., over the Internet. In other words, the user may access a secondcomputer system, e.g., an e-commerce server, over the network, place anorder for the program, optionally providing payment information, and theserver may download or deploy the program onto the client system, e.g.,a first computer system, automatically. The communication between theserver computer and the client system may utilize any availablecommunication protocols, e.g., TCP/IP, HTTP, Ethernet, 802.11, etc., asis well known in the art. Thus, in one embodiment, the deployment of theprogram onto the first device may be performed by a second computersystem coupled to the first computer system.

In 3806, the deployment of the program onto the device may be animated.In other words, the diagram or a program associated with the diagram,may animate the deployment of the first program onto the first device.It is noted that any of a variety of animation techniques may be used toperform the animation. For example, animating the deployment of theprogram may include moving the first program icon to a location in thediagram proximate to the first device icon as the program is deployed.In other words, the method may display propagation of a first programicon on the display from a first location on the display to the firstdevice icon, wherein the first program icon corresponds to the firstprogram, and where displaying propagation visually indicates that thefirst program is being deployed on the first device. As another example,the method may display propagation of one or more icons from the firstprogram icon on the display to the first device icon to visuallyindicate that the first program is being deployed onto the first device,e.g., one or more moving arrows may be displayed moving from the programicon to the device icon. Of course, once the deployment is complete, theanimation may be stopped.

It should be noted that the animation may be presented or displayedwhether the program is deployed manually or programmatically. In apreferred embodiment, the animation of the deployment is displayedsubstantially concurrently with the deployment. For example, when aprogram is automatically deployed to a device, the configuration diagrammay be animated to visually indicate to the user the deploymentoperation that is occurring. In one embodiment, the configurationdiagram includes a second device icon corresponding to a second device,where the second device initially stores the first program. In thisembodiment, the method may display propagation of the first program iconon the display from the second device icon to the first device icon. Forexample, when a program is automatically deployed from a computersystem, e.g., the client computer system or a server computer, to thefirst device, the corresponding program icon may be animated on theconfiguration diagram to “flow” from the computer system device icon tothe first device icon corresponding to the first device.

In an embodiment where the configuration diagram includes linksinterconnecting various ones of the plurality of device iconsrepresenting respective couplings between devices corresponding to thedevice icons, displaying propagation may include displaying propagationof the first program icon on the display on a link connecting the seconddevice icon and the first device icon, i.e., the animation may reflectthe particular coupling or transmission medium used to deploy theprogram to the device.

As noted above with reference to FIG. 37, in one embodiment, a treediagram may be displayed on the display of the first computer system,where the tree diagram displays a hierarchical representation of theplurality of devices. In one embodiment, the tree diagram may also beanimated to visually indicate the deploying.

Thus, in various embodiments, the deployment of a program onto a devicein a client system may be animated in a configuration diagramrepresenting the system.

FIG. 39—Receiving Purchase Information for a Client System

FIG. 39 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for receiving purchaseinformation for a client system, e.g., a measurement system. Morespecifically, the flowchart describes a method for using a configurationdiagram representing the hardware and software configuration of theclient system to receive purchase information regarding products for usein the client system. The embodiment of FIG. 39 may be implemented inthe system described above with reference to FIG. 1, where the clientsystem, e.g., a client computer, e.g., the first computer system 82, iscoupled to a server computer system, e.g., the second computer system90, through a network 84 (or a computer bus).

In a preferred embodiment, the client system includes a plurality ofdevices coupled together. In one embodiment, at least one of the devicesmay include one or more programs. As noted above, in differentembodiments the client system may include devices and software relatedto various applications and fields, including, for example, the fieldsof measurement, modeling, networks, and automation, among others.

As FIG. 39 shows, in 3902, a configuration diagram may be displayed,e.g., on a display device of the client system, where the configurationdiagram represents a plurality of products, e.g., devices and/orprograms, in the client system. In other words, the configurationdiagram may represent the current configuration of the client system. Asdescribed above, in one embodiment, the diagram may include device iconsrepresenting each of the plurality of devices, link icons indicatingcoupling relationships between the plurality of devices, and programicons representing any programs currently stored or installed in theclient system. More specifically, the configuration diagram may includea first device icon representing a first device in the client system.Examples of configuration diagrams are described above with reference toFIGS. 21A and 21B, although it is noted that these configurationdiagrams are exemplary only, and are not intended to limit the diagramsto any particular form, style, or functionality. In some embodiments,the configuration diagram may also be displayed on a display device ofthe server computer system, if desired.

In one embodiment, a tree diagram which visually represents the systemmay be displayed, where the tree diagram displays a hierarchical view ofthe plurality of products, e.g., devices and programs. The tree diagrammay also be displayed on the display. Thus, a second or alternative viewof the client system may be displayed. In one embodiment, any changesmade to one of the diagrams (the configuration diagram or the treediagram) may automatically be reflected in the other diagram.

In one embodiment, the server computer may download an agent or programto the client system, which may then execute on the client system, e.g.,on a device of the client system, to programmatically determine theinformation regarding the plurality of devices and the one or moreprograms in the client system. The agent or program may then provide thedetermined information to the server computer. In another embodiment,the server computer may access at least a portion of the informationfrom at least one of the devices in the system. For example, the servercomputer (or the downloaded agent or program) may programmaticallydetermine the information by accessing plug and play information todetermine the presence of the plurality of devices and the one or moreprograms. As another example, programmatically determining theinformation may include querying a configuration program resident on oneof the devices in the system to determine the presence of the devicesand programs.

In 3904, a plurality of product icons may be displayed representingproducts available for use in the client system. The products mayinclude hardware devices and/or programs. For example, in an embodimentwhere the client system is a measurement system, the product icons maycorrespond to various measurement devices and/or measurement programsthat may be added to or installed in the client system. The plurality ofproduct icons may be displayed in a palette, e.g., in a graphical userinterface (GUI) window, in a menu, a dialog box, etc., as is well knownin the art.

In one embodiment, the particular product icons displayed may bedependent upon the configuration diagram or information related to theconfiguration diagram. In other words, the product icons displayed maybe based on the current configuration of the client system. For example,the displayed product icons may correspond to devices and/or programsthat are compatible with those devices and/or programs represented inthe configuration diagram. Thus, in this embodiment, the method mayinclude programmatically analyzing the current configuration diagram,selecting product icons for display based on the analysis, anddisplaying the selected product icons.

In one embodiment, information related to the products may be displayedwith, or accessible through, the displayed product icons, such as, forexample, a brief description, pricing, and/or availability of eachproduct. For example, right-clicking on a product icon may invoke apop-up dialog box displaying the information for that product, or“hovering” the cursor over the icon may invoke display of theinformation.

Once the product icons have been displayed, then in 3906, user inputgraphically associating at least one first product icon with theconfiguration diagram may be received, where the first product iconrepresents a first product. The user input may indicate a desire topurchase the first product. The graphical association between the atleast one first product icon and the configuration diagram may beperformed in a variety of ways. For example, the user input maygraphically associate the at least one first product icon with a firstlocation in the configuration diagram, e.g., using “drag and drop”techniques, as is well known in the art. The first location in theconfiguration diagram may simply be a blank area within the borders,e.g., the frame, of the configuration diagram, or may correspond to adisplayed element, e.g., an icon, in the diagram. For example, the userinput may graphically associate the at least one first product iconproximate to a link icon in the configuration diagram, indicating acoupling between the first product icon and an icon in the diagramalready associated with the link.

More generally, receiving user input graphically associating the atleast one first product icon with the configuration diagram may includereceiving user input graphically associating the at least one firstproduct icon with a first location in the configuration diagram, andreceiving user input graphically coupling the at least one first producticon with a second icon in the configuration diagram, where the couplingindicates an intended relationship between the first product and acomponent of the client system corresponding to the second icon. Thus,for example, the user may drag and drop a program icon from the paletteonto or proximate to a device icon in the configuration diagram, therebyindicating that the program is to be stored and/or executed on thedevice corresponding to the device icon. In one embodiment, after saidgraphically associating, the at least one first product icon may bemodified to reflect the association. For example, the color of the iconmay be changed to indicate that the product (icon) has been selected. Asanother example, the icon's appearance may be modified to indicate theparticular relationship implied by the association, e.g., usingdifferent colors to indicate whether the corresponding product is a datasource or target, and so on.

In one embodiment, type checking may be performed regarding the intendedrelationship between the first product and the component of themeasurement system corresponding to the second icon. For example, if theprogram icon were dragged to a location proximate to the device icon,the method may programmatically, i.e., automatically, analyze theindicated relationship, e.g., that the program is to be stored and/orexecuted on the device, and determine whether such a relationship isfeasible. If the program should not or cannot be stored or executed onthe device, then an error message (or graphical equivalent) to thateffect may be presented to the user. As another example, if an iconrepresenting a PCI device were associated with a link icon which in turnwas coupled to a device icon representing a USB device, then a messageor icon may be presented to the user indicating the incompatibilitybetween USB and PCI.

In one embodiment, the message may also include suggestions as to how toresolve the issue. For example, the message may suggest that a bridgedevice or converter be inserted between the USB device and the PCIdevice to facilitate communication between the otherwise incompatibledevices. If not already included in the displayed product icons (e.g.,in the palette), then an icon representing the suggested converterdevice may be added to the palette. Thus, in one embodiment, in responseto receiving the user input indicating a desired relationship, secondproduct icons may be displayed representing second products availablefor use in the client system, where the second products are related tothe first product. More generally, where graphically associating the atleast one first product icon with the configuration diagram includesindicating a selection of the first product from the plurality ofproducts, the method may automatically display a second plurality ofproduct icons representing second products available for use in themeasurement system based on one or more past selections. In this way,the method may successively refine the presentation of product optionsto the user as the user provides successive selection information.Similarly, if the user modifies the configuration diagram, e.g., changesthe connectivity among the diagram elements or removes an element fromthe configuration, the method may modify the displayed product icons inaccordance with the new configuration.

Once the user input has been received graphically associating the atleast one first product icon with the configuration diagram, then asindicated in 3908, an updated configuration diagram may be displayedthat represents the configuration of the measurement system after theuser input has been received, where the updated configuration diagramincludes the at least one first product icon. In other words, after, orin response to, receiving the user input, the configuration diagram maybe modified to include the at least one first product icon and displayedon the client system display device. For example, in the embodimentdescribed above where user input was received graphically associatingthe at least one first product icon proximate to a link icon in theconfiguration diagram, displaying the updated configuration diagram mayinclude displaying the at least one first product icon connected to thelink icon.

In one embodiment, once the user has provided user input selecting thefirst product icon for inclusion in the configuration, e.g., bygraphically associating the first product icon with the configurationdiagram, pricing information for the first product may optionally bedisplayed, as indicated by 3910 of FIG. 39. In the case that the userinput graphically associates a plurality of product icons with theconfiguration diagram, where each of the plurality of product iconsrepresents a respective product, accumulated prices of the respectiveproducts may be displayed as each product icon is graphically associatedwith the configuration diagram. For example, the user may select thefirst product icon, thereby invoking display of pricing information forthe first product, then the user may select a second product iconrepresenting a second product, thereby invoking display of pricinginformation for the second product. The method may then displaycumulative pricing information for the two products together, i.e., maydisplay a total price for the cumulative selected products.

In various embodiments, displaying pricing information may includedisplaying a total price for all of the products on the diagram,displaying pricing information for each of the proposed products on thediagram, displaying an unpaid balance for the cost of the proposedproducts on the diagram, and/or displaying a total cost for the proposedproducts on the diagram.

In response to displaying the pricing information, user input may bereceived initiating purchase of the first product. For example, the usermay select an option from a menu or a pop-up dialog box indicatingpurchase of the selected products, and then may provide paymentinformation such as a billing account or credit card number. In responseto receiving user input initiating purchase of the first product, thefirst product may be provided to the user. For example, if the productis a program, the program may be downloaded from the server computer 90(or another server coupled to the network), or delivered via any othermeans as desired. In this embodiment, the user may drag and drop theprogram icon onto a device icon in the configuration diagram to invokedeployment of the program onto the device corresponding to the deviceicon. For more detailed information regarding deployment of programsusing a configuration diagram, please see U.S. patent application Ser.No. 10/113,067, titled “Graphically Deploying Programs on Devices in aSystem”, filed Apr. 1, 2002, and U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/123,511 titled “Graphical Association of Program Icons,” filed Apr.16, 2002, which were incorporated by reference above. If the product isa hardware device, the device may be delivered via standard deliverymeans, e.g., by mail.

Thus, according to various embodiments of the invention, the user canlog onto a server and view a palette of icons representing products suchas hardware devices or programs. The user can drag and drop hardwaredevice icons from the server palette onto a configuration diagramdisplayed on the client system. This may indicate that the user desiresto purchase these products. The user can also drag and drop in programicons from the server palette onto the configuration diagram to deployprograms from the server onto devices in the client system.

FIG. 40-Specifyng Products for a Client System

FIG. 40 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for specifying productsfor a client system, e.g., a measurement system. More specifically, theflowchart describes a method for using a configuration diagram,representing a current and/or desired hardware and/or softwareconfiguration of the client system, to specify products for use in theclient system. The embodiment of FIG. 40 may be implemented in thesystem described above with reference to FIG. 1, where the clientsystem, e.g., a client computer, e.g., the first computer system 82, iscoupled to a server computer system, e.g., the second computer system90, through a network 84 (or a computer bus).

As FIG. 40 shows, in 4002, a configuration diagram may be received,e.g., from a client system, where the configuration diagram represents adesired configuration of the client system, including, for example, aplurality of hardware devices and/or programs. As described above, thediagram may include device icons representing each of the plurality ofdevices, link icons indicating coupling relationships between theplurality of devices, and program icons representing any programscurrently stored or installed in the client system. As also describedabove, in various embodiments, the client system may be one or more of atest and measurement system, a modeling or simulation system, anautomation system, a network system, etc., among others. In oneembodiment, the client system may comprise a rapid control prototyping(RCP) system, as described above.

It should be noted that the configuration diagram may be received in avariety of different ways. For example, in one embodiment, electroniccommunication may be established between the server computer 90 and theclient system 82 over the network, e.g., a LAN, WAN, the Internet, orany other transmission medium. For example, in one embodiment, a devicein the client system, such as a client computer 82, may initiate anetwork session with the server computer, e.g., by directing a webbrowser to a URL (Universal Resource Locator) of a website maintained onthe server computer. Alternatively, the server computer 90 may initiatecommunications with the client system, e.g., the client computer 82. Itshould be noted that in various embodiments the communication betweenthe server computer and the client system may utilize any availablecommunication protocols, e.g., TCP/IP, HTTP, Ethernet, 802.11, etc., asis well known in the art.

In various embodiments, the configuration diagram may be created in anumber of different ways. For example, a user of the client system maymanually generate the configuration diagram, e.g., using a softwareprogram executing on the client computer 82, by dragging and droppingvarious icons representing devices, programs, and/or links onto thediagram, and/or by drawing the diagram. As another example, a currentconfiguration of the client system may be determined, and an initialconfiguration diagram representing the current configuration of theclient system generated or retrieved from a database. The user may thenmodify the initial configuration diagram to produce the configurationdiagram representing the desired configuration of the client system andprovide the desired configuration diagram to the server computer 90 overthe network 84.

In one embodiment, the current configuration of the client system may bedetermined programmatically, i.e., automatically. For example, in oneembodiment, the current configuration of the client system may bedetermined by the server computer over the network, e.g., the servercomputer may access the client system over the network, determine thecurrent configuration of the client system, generate the initialconfiguration diagram, and provide the diagram to the user over thenetwork. In another embodiment, the current configuration of the clientsystem may be determined by software executing on the client system,e.g., the client computer 82. In one embodiment, the software fordetermining the current configuration of the client system may bedownloaded to the client computer from the server computer over thenetwork, then executed on the client computer. Thus, the currentconfiguration of the client system may be determined by programmaticallyanalyzing the client system to determine devices and/or programscurrently in the system.

Once the configuration diagram has been received, e.g., by the servercomputer 90, then in 404 the server computer 90 may programmaticallyanalyze the configuration diagram to determine information regarding aplurality of products, e.g., at least one hardware device and at leastone program. For example, the server computer 90, e.g., softwareexecuting on the server computer, may programmatically analyze theclient system to determine pricing information for the devices and/orprograms represented in the configuration diagram. In one embodiment,the configuration diagram may include information indicating which, ifany, of the components or products represented in the configurationdiagram are already included in the client system 82. For example, theicons representing the various devices and/or programs may be labeled orcolor-coded to indicate their respective presence (or not) in the actualclient system. The server computer 90 may then determine pricinginformation for those components or products represented in the diagramwhich are not currently included in the client system, e.g., as proposedproducts for the system. It should be noted that in differentembodiments, other information related to the products, such asavailability, model numbers, descriptions, estimated delivery times,etc., may also be determined and optionally displayed.

In 4006 after the pricing information has been determined for theproposed products, the pricing information may be provided to the user,e.g., over the network. The pricing information (and possibly additionalinformation) may be provided to the user in a variety of differentforms, including text-based and/or graphical information, among others.For example, in one embodiment, the configuration diagram may bemodified to include the pricing information, and the modifiedconfiguration diagram provided to the user.

In various embodiments, displaying pricing information may includedisplaying a total price for all of the products on the diagram,displaying pricing information for each of the proposed products on thediagram, displaying an unpaid balance for the cost of the proposedproducts on the diagram, and/or displaying a total cost for the proposedproducts on the diagram.

Once the pricing information has been provided to the user, then in4008, user input specifying purchase of at least one of the proposedproducts may optionally be received, and the purchased products may beprovided to the user in response, as indicated in 4010. For example, theuser may specify purchase of the products by dragging and dropping iconsfrom a palette to the configuration diagram, or, in an embodiment wherethe products are represented by icons in the (modified) configurationdiagram, the user may right-click on a respective icon, thereby invokinga menu or pop-up dialog box that displays purchase options for thecorresponding product, e.g., payment methods, etc. The user may select adesired purchase option and may be prompted for additional paymentinformation, such as a billing account or credit card number, which maythen be entered and provided to the server computer over the network.

In one embodiment, the user may select products for purchase bymodifying the configuration diagram and providing the modified diagramback to the server. For example, the user may mark at least a subset ofthe displayed product icons to indicate purchase of the correspondingproducts, e.g., by right-clicking on each product icon and selecting anoption from a pop-up menu indicating a desire to purchase thecorresponding product. In one embodiment, payment information may alsobe entered, as described above. In response to the selected option, theselected product icon may be modified to indicate the purchase, e.g., bya color change, etc. The configuration diagram may then be provided tothe server where it may be programmatically analyzed to determine theproducts marked for purchase by the user. In another embodiment, oncethe user has selected the products for purchase using the configurationdiagram, information indicating the purchase may be provided to theserver without the configuration diagram, i.e., just the purchaseinformation may be provided.

In one embodiment, the user may select a plurality of products forpurchase, e.g., from the configuration diagram or from a palette ofavailable or proposed products. As the user selects products forpurchase, accumulated prices of the respective products may be displayedas each product icon is selected. For example, the user may select afirst product icon, thereby invoking display of pricing informationand/or purchase options for a first product, then the user may select asecond product icon representing a second product, thereby invokingdisplay of pricing information and/or purchase options for the secondproduct. The method may then display cumulative pricing information forthe two products together, i.e., may display a total price for thecumulative selected products. The cumulative price may be updated witheach product purchase selection until the user indicates completion ofthe selection process, e.g., by selecting a payment method, finalizingthe purchase, etc.

In response to receiving user input indicating or initiating purchase ofthe product(s), the product(s) may be provided to the user, as indicatedabove. For example, if the product is a program, the program may bedownloaded from the server computer 90 (or another server coupled to thenetwork), or delivered via any other means as desired. In this case, theuser may drag and drop the program icon onto a device icon in theconfiguration diagram to invoke deployment of the program onto thedevice corresponding to the device icon. For more detailed informationregarding deployment of programs using a configuration diagram, pleasesee U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/113,067, titled “GraphicallyDeploying Programs on Devices in a System”, filed Apr. 1, 2002, and U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/123,511 titled “Graphical Association ofProgram Icons,” filed Apr. 16, 2002, which were incorporated byreference above. If the product is a hardware device, the device may bedelivered via standard delivery means, e.g., by mail or other deliverymeans.

In one embodiment, in response to receiving the configuration diagram,the server computer may programmatically analyze the diagram and proposeone or more products for inclusion in the client system. For example,the method may include programmatically analyzing the configurationdiagram to perform type checking among components, e.g., devices and/orprograms, represented in the configuration diagram. In response to theanalysis type checking information may be generated and provided to theuser. As described above, type checking may include analyzing therelationships between components represented in the configurationdiagram to determine the validity or appropriateness of therelationships, or to determine alternatives to the expressedrelationships. For example, in one embodiment, type checking amongcomponents represented in the configuration diagram may includedetermining one or more incompatibilities and/or omissions among thecomponents, where the type checking information includes informationdescribing the determined one or more incompatibilities and/oromissions.

In one embodiment, the type checking information may also includeproposed changes to the configuration of the measurement system toresolve the determined incompatibilities and/or omissions. For example,as described above with reference to FIG. 39, if an icon representing aPCI device were associated with a link icon which in turn was coupled toa device icon representing a USB device, then the type checkinginformation may indicate the incompatibility between USB and PCI, andthe method may, for example, propose that a bridge device or converterbe inserted between the USB device and the PCI device to facilitatecommunication between the otherwise incompatible devices. The proposedproduct(s), along with pricing information, may be included in the typechecking information provided to the user, e.g., the client system.

In one embodiment, the type checking information may be provided to theuser by modifying the configuration diagram to include the type checkinginformation, and providing the modified configuration diagram to theuser. For example, if the method determines that a needed product isomitted from the configuration, e.g., the converter above, thenmodifying the configuration diagram to include the type checkinginformation may include adding one or more icons to the configurationdiagram representing one or more proposed products, e.g., the converterand associated links, for use in the measurement system. Thus, if notalready included in the displayed product icons (e.g., in theconfiguration diagram), then icons representing the suggested converterdevice and links may be added to the diagram.

As another example, the method may programmatically analyze theconfiguration diagram and determine that one or more of the componentsrepresented in the configuration diagram could be changed or replaced toprovide an improved solution or configuration for the client system. Forexample, alternate couplings between components or alternative devicesmay be proposed. Thus, in one embodiment, in response to analyzing theconfiguration diagram, product icons may be displayed representingproducts available for use in the client system, where the products areproposed to augment or replace components in the current configurationof the client system. In one embodiment, the icons representing theproposed products may replace the icons representing the componentsproposed to be replaced. In another embodiment, the icons representingthe proposed replacement products may be added to the configurationdiagram, where textual or graphical means are used to indicate theproposed replacements. For example, a proposed replacement link may bepresented in one color or line style (e.g., a dashed line), while the“replaced” link may be presented in a different color or line style.

Thus, a configuration diagram may be used to specify products, includinghardware devices and/or programs, for inclusion in a client system,e.g., a measurement system. Additionally, the configuration diagram maybe used to specify and/or communicate product information, such aspricing information and/or proposed products, related to the clientsystem.

FIG. 41—Generating a Configuration Diagram Based on User Specificationof a Task

FIG. 41 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for generating aconfiguration diagram for a client system, e.g., a measurement system,based on user specification of a task, e.g., a measurement task. Theembodiment of FIG. 41 may be implemented in the system described abovewith reference to FIG. 1, where the client system, e.g., a clientcomputer, e.g., the first computer system 82, is coupled to a servercomputer system, e.g., the second computer system 90, through a network84 (or a computer bus). As noted above, in various embodiments, theclient system may be one or more of a test and measurement system, amodeling or simulation system, a network system, and an automationsystem, among others. In one embodiment, the client system may comprisea rapid control prototyping (RCP) system, as also mentioned above. Itshould be noted that although the method presented in FIG. 41 isdescribed in terms of a measurement system for performing a measurementtask, this domain of application is meant to be exemplary only, and isnot intended to limit the application and use of the present inventionto any particular field or domain.

As FIG. 41 shows, in 4102, one or more requirements may be received,e.g., from the client system, specifying a task to be performed by theclient system, such as a measurement task. In a preferred embodiment,the one or more requirements may be provided in response to input from auser. For example, the user may provide user input to the clientcomputer system 82 indicating the one or more requirements for themeasurement task, and the client computer system 82, in response to theuser input, may send the one or more requirements to server computersystem 90.

The user input (requirements) may include domain specific user input.For example, in a measurement application, the user input may bemeasurement specific user input. The measurement specific user input orrequirements may include, but is not limited to, one or more of ameasurement function (i.e., instrument) type, such as an oscilloscopefunction, multimeter function, DAQ function, machine vision function,image processing function, motion control function, process controlfunction, simulation function, automation function, plant controlfunction, or measurement analysis function; sampling rate; gain;measurement type, such as voltage, resistance, temperature, current,pressure, photonic intensity, frequency, etc.

In one embodiment, the one or more requirements may comprise a taskspecification, e.g., a measurement task specification. In anotherembodiment, the measurement task specification may be determined basedon the one or more requirements. For example, software executing on theserver computer system 90 may receive the one or more requirements fromthe client computer system 82 over the network, and may programmaticallydetermine the measurement task specification based on the receivedrequirements. As another example, software executing on the clientcomputer system 82 may determine or generate the measurement taskspecification based on the requirements. Thus, in various embodiments,the one or more requirements for the measurement task may include, ormay be used to generate, the measurement task specification. For furtherdiscussion of the generation of a measurement task specification fromuser provided requirements, please see U.S. patent application Ser. No.10/008,792 titled “Measurement System Software Architecture for EasilyCreating High-Performance Measurement Applications,” filed Nov. 13,2001, and U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/120,257 titled“Network-based System for Configuring a Measurement System usingConfiguration Information Generated based on a User Specification,”filed Apr. 10, 2002, both of which were incorporated by reference above.

In response to receiving the one or more requirements (and/or the taskspecification), then in 4104, a plurality of measurement products may bedetermined, where the plurality of measurement products are operable toperform the measurement task, optionally in conjunction with the clientcomputer system and/or other devices or programs included in themeasurement system. The plurality of measurement products may include atleast one measurement device and/or at least one software product, e.g.,a measurement program. In a one embodiment, software executing on theserver computer system 90 may programmatically analyze the one or morerequirements to determine the plurality of measurement products. In anembodiment where a measurement task specification was determined basedon the one or more requirements, e.g., by the client computer 82 or theserver computer system 90, the one or more measurement products may bedetermined by programmatically analyzing the measurement taskspecification. For example, if the requirement and/or task specificationindicate that a temperature is to be measured and represented as avoltage, then the method may propose a voltage-based temperature sensorcoupled to a data acquisition (DAQ) device, and may also proposeadditional items, such as a signal conditioner or suitable transmissionmedium.

In one embodiment, determining the plurality of measurement products mayinclude determining a current configuration of the measurement system.In this embodiment, the plurality of measurement products may bedetermined by programmatically analyzing the one or more requirementsand the current configuration of the measurement system. For example,the method may determine whether the specified task may be performedusing the current configuration of the measurement system. If thecurrent configuration of the measurement system is not adequate for thetask, then the method may determine additional measurement productsneeded to perform the task, and that are also compatible with thecurrent devices and/or programs in the current configuration of themeasurement system. If the method determines that some of the currentcomponents, i.e., devices and/or programs, are not suitable forperforming the specified task, then one or more measurement products maybe proposed for replacement of the unsuitable components. Thedetermination of the current configuration of the measurement system(e.g., the client system) may be performed in a variety of ways.

In one embodiment, the server computer may download an agent or programto the client system, which may then execute on the client system, e.g.,on a device of the client system, to programmatically determine thecurrent configuration of the client system. The agent or program maythen provide the determined configuration information to the servercomputer. In another embodiment, the server computer may access at leasta portion of the information from at least one of the devices in thesystem. For example, the server computer (or the downloaded agent orprogram) may programmatically determine the current configuration byaccessing plug and play information to determine the presence of theplurality of devices and the one or more programs. As another example,programmatically determining the current configuration may includequerying a configuration program resident on one of the devices in thesystem to determine the presence of the devices and programs.

In one embodiment, a configuration diagram representing the currentconfiguration of the measurement system may be determined, as indicatedin 4106. In other words, a configuration diagram may be generated orretrieved from a database that iconically represents the devices and/orprograms currently included in the measurement system. As describedabove, in one embodiment, the (current) configuration diagram mayinclude device icons representing each of the plurality of devices, linkicons indicating coupling relationships between the plurality ofdevices, and program icons representing any programs currently stored orinstalled in the measurement system. Examples of configuration diagramsare described above with reference to FIGS. 21A and 21B, although it isnoted that these configuration diagrams are exemplary only, and are notintended to limit the diagrams to any particular form, style, orfunctionality.

In one embodiment, a tree diagram which visually represents the systemmay be generated or retrieved from a database, where the tree diagramdisplays a hierarchical view of the plurality of devices and the one ormore programs, and the tree diagram displayed on the display, thusproviding a second or alternative view of the system.

In an embodiment where the current configuration of the measurementsystem is used to generate a (current) configuration diagram whichiconically represents the current configuration of the measurementsystem, the generated diagram may be displayed on a display of theclient computer system 82, and/or on a display device of the servercomputer system 90. In one embodiment, the configuration diagramrepresenting the current configuration of the measurement system may bemodified, e.g., by the server computer 90, to include the proposed oneor more measurement products, in which case, displaying the diagram mayinclude displaying information representing at least a subset of theplurality of measurement products to the user as proposed hardwareand/or software products for the measurement system. For example,modifying the diagram may include adding one or more measurement producticons to the diagram representing the proposed measurement products foruse in the measurement system, where the icons of the proposed productsmay be displayed differently from the other product icons to visuallyindicate that they are proposed products. In one embodiment,modifications made to either of the configuration diagram or the treediagram may automatically result in corresponding changes to the otherdiagram.

As described above with reference to FIG. 40, in one embodiment, themethod may programmatically analyze the current configuration, e.g., theconfiguration diagram (in light of the requirements), and determine thatone or more of the components represented in the configuration diagramcould be changed or replaced to provide an improved solution orconfiguration for the measurement system. For example, alternatecouplings between components or alternative devices may be proposed.Thus, in one embodiment, in response to analyzing the configurationdiagram, product icons may be displayed representing products availablefor use in the client system, where the products are proposed to augmentor replace components in the current configuration of the measurementsystem. In one embodiment, the icons representing the proposed productsmay replace the icons representing the components proposed to bereplaced. In another embodiment, the icons representing the proposedreplacement products may be added to the configuration diagram, wheretextual or graphical means are used to indicate the proposedreplacements. For example, a proposed replacement link may be presentedin one color or line style (e.g., a dashed line), while the “replaced”link may be presented in a different color or line style. In anotherembodiment, the proposed measurement products may be presented to theuser in a palette, e.g., as part of, or in addition to, theconfiguration diagram.

In one embodiment, the diagram may also be modified to include pricinginformation for the proposed measurement products, and optionally, theother products in the diagram, as well. For example, in one embodiment,pricing information may be displayed proximate to respective measurementproduct icons in the configuration diagram, e.g., in response to theuser right-clicking on an icon, or in response to the user “hovering”the cursor over an icon. In other embodiments, additional informationrelated to the proposed products may also be included in theconfiguration diagram, such as, for example, availability, orderinformation, model numbers, descriptions, and so forth, as mentionedabove. For example, the diagram may be modified to include estimateddelivery times for the proposed products, e.g., in response to the userright-clicking or hovering over a product icon.

Once the (modified) configuration diagram has been provided for displayto the user, e.g., via the client computer system 82, then in 4108, userinput may be received indicating purchase of at least one of the one ormore measurement products. For example, the user may specify purchase ofthe products by dragging and dropping icons from a palette to theconfiguration diagram, or, in an embodiment where the products arerepresented by icons in the (modified) configuration diagram, the usermay right-click on a respective icon, thereby invoking a menu or pop-updialog box that displays purchase options for the corresponding product,e.g., payment methods, etc. The user may select a desired purchaseoption and may be prompted for additional payment information, such as abilling account or credit card number, which may then be entered andprovided to the server computer over the network.

In response to receiving user input specifying purchase of the proposedmeasurement products, then in 4110, at least one of the one or moreproposed measurement products may be provided to the user. For example,if the product is a program, the program may be downloaded from theserver computer 90 (or another server coupled to the network), ordelivered via any other means as desired. In one embodiment, the usermay drag and drop the program icon onto a device icon in theconfiguration diagram to invoke deployment of the program onto thedevice corresponding to the device icon. For more detailed informationregarding deployment of programs using a configuration diagram, pleasesee U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/113,067, titled “GraphicallyDeploying Programs on Devices in a System”, filed Apr. 1, 2002, and U.S.patent application Ser. No. 10/123,511 titled “Graphical Association ofProgram Icons,” filed Apr. 16, 2002, which were incorporated byreference above. If the purchased product is a hardware device, thedevice may be delivered via standard delivery means, e.g., by mail. Inone embodiment, providing the at least one of the proposed products tothe user may include displaying order-tracking information for thepurchased products. For example, once the purchase has been finalized,the user may right-click or hover the cursor over the icon to check theorder and/or tracking status of the product.

In one embodiment, the proposed (and optionally purchased) measurementproducts may include at least one measurement device and at least onesoftware product or program. For example, at least one of the one ormore software products or programs may be operable to be deployed on atleast one of the one or more measurement devices to perform a respectivemeasurement function or operation. In one embodiment, informationindicating at least one measurement device of the one or moremeasurement devices and at least one software product of the one or moresoftware products may be provided to a manufacturer in response todetermining the proposed measurement products. The manufacturer may thenconfigure the at least one measurement device with the at least onesoftware product to produce at least one configured measurement device,where the at least one configured measurement device is operable toperform at least a portion of the measurement task. The manufacturer maythen send the configured at least one measurement device to the user.

As mentioned above, the measurement devices and programs may be ofvarious types and functionality. For example, in one embodiment, aproposed and purchased measurement device may include a programmablehardware element, such as an FPGA. A program proposed and purchased foruse with the device may be a hardware configuration program which whendeployed onto the FPGA configures the measurement device (the FPGA) toperform a measurement function. Thus, the manufacturer may receive theinformation indicating the measurement device and the hardwareconfiguration program (and may also receive the program itself) from theserver, deploy the program onto the FPGA of the measurement device, andprovide the configured device to the user. In an alternative embodiment,the manufacturer may receive a program, e.g., a graphical program, whichis compilable or convertible to the hardware configuration program. Inthis case, the manufacturer may generate the hardware configurationprogram from the received program and deploy the generated hardwareconfiguration program onto the FPGA, as described above.

FIGS. 42-44—Configuration Diagram Database

FIGS. 42-44 flowchart various embodiments of methods for the creationand use of a configuration database. More specifically, FIGS. 42 and 43flowchart embodiments of a method for using a configuration diagramdatabase to configure a client system, e.g., a measurement system, andFIG. 44 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for creating theconfiguration database. The embodiments of FIGS. 42-44 may beimplemented in the system described above with reference to FIG. 1,where the client system, e.g., a client computer, e.g., the firstcomputer system 82, is coupled to a server computer system, e.g., thesecond computer system 90, through a network 84 (or a computer bus). Asnoted above, in various embodiments, the client system may be one ormore of a test and measurement system, a modeling or simulation system,a network system, and an automation system, among others. It should benoted, however, that the these domains or fields of application aremeant to be exemplary only, and are not intended to limit theapplication and use of the present invention to any particular field ordomain.

FIG. 42 flowcharts one embodiment of a method for configuring a clientsystem using a configuration database. As FIG. 42 shows, in 4202, firstinput may be received from a client system over a network requestingaccess to a plurality of configuration diagrams, e.g., stored in aconfiguration diagram database. For example, a user of the client systemmay wish to configure the client system to perform a desired task, e.g.,a measurement task, but may be unsure as to how to do so. Each of theplurality of configuration diagrams may include or represent a solutionto a respective task. In other words, each configuration diagram maygraphically, e.g., iconically, represent one or more products, e.g.,devices and/or programs, that are together operable to perform arespective task. In various embodiments, the configuration diagramdatabase storing a plurality of configuration diagrams may include oneor more of: storing respective bitmaps of the configurations, storinggraphical programs that implement the configuration diagrams, storingdata from which the configuration diagram may be generated, and storinglinks for accessing configuration diagrams stored on other systems,e.g., in a distributed database, among other implementations.

In one embodiment, the first input may be provided in response to userinput. For example, the client system may access a configuration diagramserver computer system over the network, the user of the client systemmay enter user input to the client system, e.g., via a keyboard ormouse, and the client system may in response send the first input to theserver computer system over the network.

In response to receiving the first input, in 4204, at least a subset ofthe plurality of configuration diagrams may be displayed on a displaydevice of the client system for viewing by the user of the clientsystem. For example, the at least a subset of the plurality ofconfiguration diagrams may be retrieved from the configuration databaseand displayed to the user. In one embodiment, the user of the clientsystem may browse one or more configuration diagrams from theconfiguration diagram database, e.g., using a web-browser, as iswell-known in the art. In one embodiment, the user may browse or searchthrough the various configuration diagrams using keywords or otherinformation related to the configuration diagrams, as discussed in moredetail below.

Then, as indicated in 4206, second input may be received from the clientsystem selecting one of the at least a subset of the plurality ofconfiguration diagrams, where the selected configuration diagramindicates a solution for the desired task to be performed by the clientsystem. In other words, the user may indicate which of the configurationdiagrams provides a suitable solution for performing the desired task.Said another way, the selected configuration diagram may be usable toconfigure the client system, thereby enabling the client system toperform the task.

In one embodiment, information related to each of the at least a subsetof the plurality of configuration diagrams may be provided to the user,and the selection made based on the provided information. For example,the information may include one or more of: identification informationfor the configuration diagram; version information for the configurationdiagram; a functional description of the configuration diagram; platforminformation for the configuration diagram; searchable information forthe configuration diagram; a list of devices and/or programs representedin the configuration diagram, possibly including pricing information;and one or more tasks for which the configuration diagram comprises asolution, among others.

In one embodiment, payment information may be received from the clientsystem prior to providing the solution. In other words, information suchas a credit card number or a billing account may be provided by theclient system (e.g., the user) for payment for the provided solution.

Finally, in 4208, the solution may be provided to the client system overthe network. In one embodiment, providing the solution to the clientsystem may include providing information related to one or more productsto the user as proposed hardware and/or software products for the clientsystem, where the proposed hardware and/or software is operable toperform the task. In one embodiment the selected configuration diagrammay be provided to the client system, where the selected configurationdiagram includes information representing the proposed hardware and/orsoftware products for the client system.

For example, the configuration diagram may graphically represent one ormore (or a plurality of) devices in a proposed system, as well as one ormore programs (or a plurality of programs) stored on the one or moredevices in the proposed system. In the case that the configurationdiagram represents a plurality of devices, the configuration diagram mayinclude a plurality of device icons representing the plurality ofdevices in the proposed system. The plurality of device icons may beconnected by link icons indicating couplings between the plurality ofdevices in the proposed system.

In one embodiment, the configuration diagram may comprise a tree diagramwhich visually represents the proposed system, wherein the tree diagramdisplays a hierarchical view of the plurality of devices and the one ormore programs in the proposed system. In another embodiment, one or moreof the configuration diagrams may comprise the plurality of device iconsconnected by link icons indicating couplings between the plurality ofdevices in the proposed system, as well as the tree diagram presenting ahierarchical view of the devices (and optionally the programs) in theproposed system. Further details regarding various embodiments ofconfiguration diagrams are provided above with reference to FIGS. 21Aand 21B, although it is noted that these configuration diagrams areexemplary only, and are not intended to limit the diagrams to anyparticular form, style, or functionality.

The configuration diagram may further graphically representconfiguration information for at least one of the one or more devicesand the one or more programs in the proposed system. In other words, theprovided configuration diagram may comprise a proposed configuration forthe client system.

As mentioned above, the configuration diagram may include pricing orother related information for the one or more devices in the proposedsystem and the one or more programs stored on the one or more devices inthe proposed system, e.g., displayed proximate to respective producticons in the diagram.

In an embodiment where the provided configuration diagram comprises aproposed configuration of the client system, the method may furtherinclude receiving a modified version of the provided solution from theclient system over the network, where the modified version of theprovided solution includes one or more changes to the proposedconfiguration. In other words, once the client system, e.g., the user,has received the proposed solution, e.g., the provided configurationdiagram, the user may modify the configuration diagram to reflectdesired changes in the proposed configuration. For example, if the useralready owns a signal conditioning unit, a signal conditioning unitproposed for use in the configuration diagram may be replaced (by theuser) with the already owned unit. The modified configuration diagrammay then be provided by the client system to the server computer systemover the network.

In one embodiment, providing information related to one or more productsto the user as proposed hardware and/or software products for the clientsystem may include determining a current configuration of the clientsystem, analyzing the current configuration of the client system and theselected configuration diagram, and determining the one or more productsbased on the analysis. In other words, the server system may determinethe current configuration of the client system, and determine theproposed configuration based at least partly on the currentconfiguration.

In one embodiment, once the client system has received the proposedsolution from the server computer system, user input may be receivedindicating purchase of at least one of the proposed hardware and/orsoftware products. The at least one of the proposed hardware and/orsoftware products may then be provided to the user in response. Forexample, as described above, purchased software products may bedownloaded and/or deployed directly to the client system over thenetwork, and purchased hardware devices may be delivered via traditionalmeans, e.g., via mail or any other delivery means.

In one embodiment, the selected configuration diagram may include vendorinformation indicating one or more vendors able to configure a solutionin accordance with the selected configuration diagram. For example, thevendor information may include one or more of: an email address, awebsite address, a telephone number, a postal address, and vendoridentification, among other information. As noted above, the term“vendor” refers to a business, enterprise, supplier, or manufacturerthat sells products and/or provides services related to products, suchas, for example, installing hardware and/or software. An example of avendor is a National Instruments Alliance member.

In a further embodiment, input may be received from the client systemindicating a desire to correspond with a first vendor of the one or morevendors, and the method may include programmatically corresponding withthe first vendor in response to said third input. For example, the usermay click on an email address or otherwise indicate a desire to contactthe vendor, in response to which an email message (or othercorrespondence means) may be sent to the vendor, or alternatively,presented to the user for modification and sending to the vendor. Asanother example, the user may right-click on the icon to invoke a pop-upmenu presenting various means of contacting the vendor, e.g., anauto-dialer for automatically establishing telephone contact, a web linkor URL (Universal Resource Locator) for accessing the vendor's website,and so forth.

FIG. 43 illustrates an alternative embodiment of the method of FIG. 42.More specifically, in the embodiment shown in FIG. 43, a configurationdiagram from the configuration diagram database is determinedprogrammatically based on user provided requirements, as describedbelow. Where the steps are substantially the same as those of the abovemethods, the descriptions have been abbreviated.

As FIG. 43 shows, in 4302, requirements may be received over a networkfor a task to be performed by a client system. In a preferredembodiment, the requirements may be provided in response to input from auser. For example, the user may provide user input to the clientcomputer system 82 indicating the requirements for the task, and theclient computer system 82, in response to the user input, may send therequirements to server computer system 90.

As noted above with reference to step 4102 of FIG. 41, the user input(and/or requirements) may include domain specific user input, such asmeasurement-, simulation-, automation-, or network-specific input. Asalso noted above, the requirements may comprise, or may be used togenerate, a task specification, e.g., a measurement task specification.

Once the requirements have been received, then in 4304, the receivedrequirements may be programmatically analyzed, and in 4306, aconfiguration diagram determined from a configuration diagram databasein response to the analysis, where the configuration diagram representsa proposed system configuration for the client system for performing thetask. As described in detail above, the system configuration diagram mayspecify one or more devices and/or one or more programs for the clientsystem to perform the task.

The determined configuration diagram may then be provided to the clientsystem over the network for display to a user of the client system, asindicated in 4308. As described in detail above, the determinedconfiguration diagram may be usable to configure the client system,thereby enabling the client system to perform the task. As also notedabove, the configuration diagram may graphically represent one or moredevices present in a proposed system, and one or more programs stored onthe one or more devices in the proposed system.

FIG. 44—Population of a Configuration Diagram Database

FIG. 44 flowcharts an embodiment of a method for populating aconfiguration diagram database. As FIG. 44 shows, the first step of FIG.44 is substantially the same as in the methods of FIGS. 41 and 43,where, in 4102, requirements may be received over a network for a taskto be performed by a client system, preferably in response to input froma user. As noted above, the task may be any type of task, such as, forexample, a measurement task, a control task, an automation task, amodeling and/or simulation task, and a network management task, amongothers. As also noted above, in one embodiment, the requirements for thetask may include or may be used to generate a task specification.

In 4404, a system configuration may be determined in response to thereceived requirements, where the system configuration specifies one ormore devices and/or one or more programs for the client system toperform the task. In other words, based on the requirements, a systemconfiguration may be determined such that, if the client system were soconfigured, the client system would be operable to perform the task.

Then, in 4406, a configuration diagram may then be generated in responseto the determination of the system configuration, where theconfiguration diagram graphically represents the determined systemconfiguration for the client system. As described in detail above, theconfiguration diagram may specify and/or graphically represent, one ormore devices and/or one or more programs for the client system toperform the task. As noted above, further details regarding variousembodiments of configuration diagrams are provided above with referenceto FIGS. 21A and 21B.

Once the configuration diagram has been generated, then in 4408 thegenerated configuration diagram may be stored in a configuration diagramdatabase. A plurality of stored configuration diagrams, including thegenerated configuration diagram, may be retrievable from theconfiguration diagram database for provision to a plurality of usersover the network. In other words, the configuration diagram database mayfunction as a configuration solutions “clearinghouse” for clients, wherea plurality of users may access a configuration diagram database serverfor configuration solutions for desired tasks. For example, theconfiguration diagram database may be browsable by a plurality of usersto view stored configuration diagrams, including the generatedconfiguration diagram, where one or more configuration diagrams are userselectable and retrievable from the configuration diagram database. Asnoted above, the configuration diagram may include device icons andlinks indicating couplings between the devices, and/or may be a treediagram presenting a hierarchical view of the proposed system.

In an alternate approach, users may provide requirements for a task, andan appropriate solution (e.g., a configuration diagram) programmaticallydetermined (and retrieved) from the database. Various embodiments ofmethods for using the configuration diagram database are described abovewith reference to FIGS. 42 and 43.

In addition to the above-described approach for populating theconfiguration diagram database, other approaches may also be used topopulate the database with configuration diagrams. For example, aplurality of pre-defined configuration diagrams may be generatedrepresenting a corresponding plurality of pre-defined systemconfigurations, where each pre-defined system configuration comprises arespective solution for performing a task. The plurality of pre-definedconfiguration diagrams may then be stored in the configuration diagramdatabase, where the plurality of stored configuration diagrams,including the generated pre-defined configuration diagrams, may beretrievable from the configuration diagram database for provision to aplurality of users over the network.

In another approach to populating the configuration diagram database,one or more configuration diagrams may be received from a second clientsystem over the network, where the one or more configuration diagramseach comprise a solution to a respective task. The received one or moreconfiguration diagrams may be stored in the configuration diagramdatabase, and as above, the plurality of stored configuration diagrams,including the received configuration diagrams, may be retrievable fromthe configuration diagram database for provision to a plurality of usersover the network. In other words, respective users of client systems maydevise their own solutions to desired tasks and provide them for storageand subsequent retrieval in the configuration database. For example, auser may draw at least a portion of the configuration diagram, e.g.,using a graphical tool, and provide the diagram for storage in thedatabase. In another embodiment, a vendor may provide one or moreconfiguration diagrams for storage in the configuration diagramdatabase, where each configuration diagram represents a system that thevendor is able to install. In one embodiment, at least one of theconfiguration diagrams may include a plurality of product iconsrepresenting respective devices from a plurality of vendors.

For example, in one embodiment, one or more of the product icons mayrepresent used products, e.g., resale products, which may be availablefor purchase from one or more vendors, thus providing a more affordablesolution to users who may not otherwise wish to or be able to purchasethe products new.

In an alternative embodiment, rather than receiving one or moreconfiguration diagrams from the second client system, one or more systemconfigurations may be received from the second client system over thenetwork, each comprising a solution to a respective task. One or morecorresponding configuration diagrams may then be generated in response,where the generated configuration diagrams graphically represent thereceived system configurations. The generated configuration diagrams maythen be stored in the configuration diagram database, as describedabove.

As noted above, in a preferred embodiment, each of the configurationdiagrams may include associated information describing the respectiveconfiguration diagrams, where at least a portion of the receivedinformation is stored in the configuration diagram database. In anotherembodiment, information related to each of the plurality of storedconfiguration diagrams may be stored, where the stored information isusable to retrieve the stored configuration diagrams. For example, invarious embodiments, the information related to each configurationdiagram may include one or more of: identification information for theconfiguration diagram, version information for the configurationdiagram, a functional description of the configuration diagram, platforminformation for the configuration diagram, searchable information forthe configuration diagram, a list of devices and/or programs representedin the configuration diagram, and one or more tasks for which theconfiguration diagram comprises a solution. Of course, other informationrelated to each configuration diagram may also be used as desired orneeded.

Thus, various embodiments of the systems and methods described above mayprovide improved network-based means for configuring client computersystems to perform desired tasks.

Various embodiments further include receiving or storing instructionsand/or data implemented in accordance with the foregoing descriptionsupon a carrier medium. Suitable carrier media include a memory medium asdescribed above, as well as signals such as electrical, electromagnetic,or digital signals, conveyed via a communication medium such as networksand/or a wireless link.

Although the embodiments above have been described in considerabledetail, numerous variations and modifications will become apparent tothose skilled in the art once the above disclosure is fully appreciated.It is intended that the following claims be interpreted to embrace allsuch variations and modifications.

1. A method for configuring a measurement system, the method comprising:displaying a configuration diagram on a display that iconicallyrepresents a measurement system; receiving user input selecting at leastone device icon for inclusion in the configuration diagram, wherein thedevice icon corresponds to a measurement device; providing informationover a wide area network (WAN) based on the user input selecting the atleast one device icon, wherein the information specifies the measurementdevice; and providing the measurement device to the user in response tosaid information.
 2. The method of claim 1, further comprising: inresponse to said receiving user input, modifying the configurationdiagram to include the at least one device icon; and displaying themodified configuration diagram on the display.
 3. The method of claim 1,further comprising: receiving payment information from the user forpurchase of the measurement device.
 4. The method of claim 1, whereinsaid providing the measurement device to the user comprises: determiningif the user does not have the measurement device by: determininginstalled measurement devices in the measurement system over the widearea network; comparing the determined installed measurement devices tothe measurement device to determine if the measurement device is notinstalled in the measurement system; and if the user does not have theat least one measurement device, providing the measurement device to theuser.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein said displaying theconfiguration diagram on the display comprises: displaying one or moredevice icons corresponding respectively to one or more measurementdevices in the measurement system; and displaying connections betweenthe one or more device icons, wherein the displayed connectionscorrespond to couplings between the one or more measurement devices inthe measurement system.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein theconfiguration diagram is comprised in a graphical user interface (GUI),the method further comprising: receiving user input to the GUIspecifying purchase of the measurement device; and modifying theconfiguration diagram to reflect the purchase.
 7. The method of claim 6,wherein the modified configuration diagram reflecting the purchasecomprises a virtual device icon representing the purchased measurementdevice, the method further comprising: deploying the at least onemeasurement device to the measurement system; and modifying the displayof the configuration diagram representing the at least one measurementdevice to reflect said deploying.
 8. The method of claim 7, wherein saidmodifying the display of the configuration diagram comprises replacingthe virtual device icon with the device icon.
 9. The method of claim 7,wherein said modifying the display of the configuration diagramrepresenting the at least one measurement device to reflect saiddeploying comprises: animating the configuration diagram to visuallyillustrate to the user the deployment of the at least one measurementdevice to the measurement system.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein themeasurement system includes a client computer system, the method furthercomprising: prior to the manufacturer sending the at least onemeasurement device to the user, providing a simulation program to theclient system, wherein the software program simulates operation of theat least one measurement device; wherein the simulation program isexecutable by the client computer system to perform at least a portionof the functionality of the at least one measurement device; and whereinuse of the simulation program is discontinued when the at least onemeasurement device is deployed in the measurement system.
 11. The methodof claim 10, wherein said displaying the configuration diagram furthercomprises: displaying a device icon representing said simulationprogram, wherein the device icon is modified to indicate that functionsof the at least one measurement device are performed by the simulationprogram, wherein after said at least one measurement device is deployedin the measurement system, the modified device icon is replaced with adevice icon representing the at least one measurement device.
 12. Themethod of claim 1, wherein said providing information over a wide areanetwork (WAN) based on the user input selecting the at least one deviceicon comprises: a client computer receiving the user input; and theclient computer providing the information to a server in response to thereceived user input to the client computer.
 13. The method of claim 12,wherein said providing the measurement device to the user in response tothe information comprises; the server computer initiating said providingthe measurement device in response to the information.
 14. The method ofclaim 1, further comprising: automatically determining the at least onemeasurement device based on the information.
 15. The method of claim 1,wherein said receiving user input selecting at least one device iconspecifying inclusion of the at least one measurement device in themeasurement system comprises receiving user input to the configurationdiagram.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein said receiving user inputselecting at least one device icon specifying inclusion of the at leastone measurement device in the measurement system comprises receivinguser input dragging and dropping the user-selected at least one deviceicon onto the configuration diagram.
 17. The method of claim 1, whereinsaid providing the at least one measurement device to the usercomprises: storing information indicating the at least one measurementdevice; and sending the at least one measurement device to the user. 18.The method of claim 1, wherein the at least one measurement devicecomprises a programmable hardware element, the method furthercomprising: providing one or more hardware configuration programs to theuser which are usable to configure the programmable hardware element toperform a measurement function.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein saidproviding one or more hardware configuration programs comprises:configuring the programmable hardware element of the at least onehardware device with at least one of the one or more hardwareconfiguration programs; and sending the configured at least one hardwaredevice to the user.
 20. The method of claim 18, wherein the measurementsystem includes a client computer system; wherein said at least onesoftware product comprises a hardware configuration program, the methodfurther comprising: prior to said providing the at least one softwareproduct to the measurement system, providing a simulation program to theclient system which simulates operation of the hardware configurationprogram; wherein the simulation program is executable by the clientcomputer system to perform the function of the hardware configurationprogram in the measurement system; and wherein use of the simulationprogram is discontinued when the hardware configuration program isdeployed in the measurement system.
 21. The method of claim 18, whereinthe at least one measurement device comprises a CPU and a memory, themethod further comprising: providing at least one program file which isexecutable by the at least one measurement device to perform ameasurement function.
 22. The method of claim 1, further comprising:configuring the at least one measurement device with the at least oneprogram file.
 23. A system for configuring a measurement system,comprising: a server; and a client computer system, coupled to theconfiguration server over a wide area network; wherein the clientcomputer system is operable to: display a configuration diagram on adisplay that iconically represents a measurement system; receive userinput selecting at least one device icon for inclusion in theconfiguration diagram, wherein the device icon corresponds to ameasurement device; provide information over a wide area network (WAN)based on the user input selecting the at least one device icon; whereinthe information specifies the measurement device wherein the server isoperable to: receive the information over the WAN; and initiateprovision of the at least one measurement device to the user.
 24. Asystem for configuring a measurement system, comprising: means fordisplaying a configuration diagram on a display that iconicallyrepresents a measurement system; means for receiving user inputselecting at least one device icon for inclusion in the configurationdiagram, wherein the device icon corresponds to a measurement device;means for providing information over a wide area network (WAN) based onthe user input selecting the at least one device icon; and means forproviding the measurement device to the user in response to saidinformation.
 25. A method for configuring a measurement system, themethod comprising: displaying a plurality of device icons on a display,wherein each of the device icons represents a respective measurementdevice; receiving user input selecting a first device icon, wherein thefirst device icon corresponds to a first measurement device; providinginformation over a wide area network based on the user input selectingthe first device icon, wherein the information specifies the firstmeasurement device; providing the first measurement device to the userin response to said information.
 26. The method of claim 25, furthercomprising: in response to said receiving user input, modifying theconfiguration diagram to include the at least one device icon; anddisplaying the modified configuration diagram on the display.
 27. Themethod of claim 25, further comprising: receiving payment informationfrom the user for purchase of the measurement device.